Jan 03, Midday Prayer for Tuesday of the 2nd week of Christmas

Ribbon Placement:
Liturgy of the Hours Vol. I:
Ordinary: 661
Proper of Seasons: 515
Psalter: Tuesday, Week II, 844

Midday Prayer (Sext) for Tuesday before Epiphany, using Current Psalmody

God, come to my assistance.
– Lord, make haste to help me.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
– as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.

HYMN

Lord of all hopefulness, Lord of all joy,
Whose trust, ever childlike, no cares could destroy,
Be there at our waking, and give us, we pray,
Your bliss in our hearts, Lord, at the break of the day.

Lord of all eagerness, Lord of all faith,
Whose strong hands were skilled at the plane and the lathe,
Be there at our labors, and give us, we pray,
Your strength in our hearts, Lord, at the noon of the day.

Lord of all kindliness, Lord of all grace,
Your hand swift to welcome, your arms to embrace,
Be there at our homing, and give us we pray,
Your love in our hearts, Lord, at the eve of the day.

Lord of all gentleness, Lord of all calm,
Whose voice is contentment, whose presence is balm,
Be there at our sleeping, and give us, we pray,
Your peace in our hearts, Lord, at the end of the day.

Lord of All Hopefulness by Saint Clement’s Choir; Words: Jan Struther (20thC); Music: Slane Irish ballad melody

PSALMODY

Ant. Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart.

Psalm 119:49-56
VII (Zain)

Remember your word to your servant
by which you gave me hope.
This is my comfort in sorrow
that your promise gives me life.

Though the proud may utterly deride me
I keep to your law.
I remember your decrees of old
and these, Lord, console me.

I am seized with indignation at the wicked
who forsake your law.
Your commands have become my song
in the land of exile.

I think of your name in the night-time
and I keep your law.
This has been my blessing,
the keeping of your precepts.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
– as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Psalm-prayer

Lord, you raise us up from our lowliness by giving us the hope of eternal life. May we always serve you in this our pilgrimage and come to enjoy the happiness of our home with you.

Psalm 53
The foolishness of sinners
We all have sinned and are deprived of God’s glory (Romans 3:23).

The fool has said in his heart:
“There is no God above.”
Their deeds are corrupt, depraved;
not a good man is left.

God looks down from heaven
on the sons of men
to see if any are wise,
if any seek God.

All have left the right path,
depraved, every one.
There is not a good man left,
no, not even one.

Will the evil-doers not understand?
They eat up my people
as though they were eating bread:
they never pray to God.

See how they tremble with fear
without cause for fear:
for God scatters the bones of the wicked.
They are shamed; God rejects them.

O that Israel’s salvation might come from Zion!
When God delivers his people from bondage,
then Jacob will be glad and Israel rejoice.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
– as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Psalm-prayer

Almighty Father, apart from you there is nothing true, nothing holy on earth. Dismiss our sins, and give us strength in our weakness so that all who believe in your Son may rejoice in his glory.

Psalm 54:1-6, 8-9
Plea for help
The prophet prays that God will deliver him from the malice of his enemies (Cassian).

O God, save me by your name;
by your power, uphold my cause.
O God, hear my prayer;
listen to the words of my mouth.

For proud men have risen against me,
ruthless men seek my life.
They have no regard for God.
But I have God for my help.
The Lord upholds my life.

I will sacrifice to you with willing heart
and praise your name for it is good:
for you have rescued me from all my distress
and my eyes have seen the downfall of my foes.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
– as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Psalm-prayer

We humbly ask you, Father, to save us from every evil and trial on earth that we may seek with our hearts and deeds our Lord and helper, Jesus Christ, whom we look to in the heavens.

Ant. Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart.

READING Isaiah 9:1

The people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light;
Upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom
a light has shone.

Sacred Silence (indicated by a bell)
A moment to reflect and receive in our hearts the full resonance of the voice of the Holy Spirit and to unite our personal prayer more closely with the word of God and public voice of the Church.

All the ends of the earth, alleluia.
– Have seen the saving power of our God, alleluia.

CONCLUDING PRAYER

O God,
who in the blessed childbearing of the holy Virgin Mary
kept the flesh of your Son
free from the sentence incurred by the human race,
grant, we pray,
that we, who have been taken up into this new creation,
may be freed from the ancient taint of sin.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
– Amen.

ACCLAMATION (only added when praying in community)

Let us praise the Lord.
– And give him thanks.

Jan 03, Evening Prayer for Tuesday of the 2nd week of Christmas

Ribbon Placement:
Liturgy of the Hours Vol. I:
Ordinary: 667
Propers: 516
Psalter: Tuesday, Week II, 846

Christian Prayer:
Ordinary: 694
Propers: tbd
Psalter: Tuesday, Week II, 807

Evening Prayer for Tuesday before Epiphany

God, come to my assistance.
– Lord, make haste to help me.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
– as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.

HYMN

What child is this, who laid to rest,
on Mary’s lap is sleeping?
Whom angels greet with anthems sweet,
while shepherds watch are keeping?

Refrain:
This, this is Christ the King,
whom shepherds guard and angels sing;
haste, haste to bring him laud,
the babe, the son of Mary.

Why lies he in such mean estate
where ox and ass are feeding?
Good Christian, fear: for sinners here
the silent Word is pleading.

Refrain:
This, this is Christ the King,
whom shepherds guard and angels sing;
haste, haste to bring him laud,
the babe, the son of Mary.

So bring him incense, gold, and myrrh,
come, peasant, king, to own him;
the King of kings salvation brings,
let loving hearts enthrone him.

Refrain:
This, this is Christ the King,
whom shepherds guard and angels sing;
haste, haste to bring him laud,
the babe, the son of Mary.

“What child is this” by St Joseph Catholic Churc Choir; Words: William Chatterton Dix, c. 1865; Music: Greensleaves; Meter: 87 87 with Refrain

PSALMODY

Ant. 1 You cannot serve both God and mammon.

Psalm 49
Emptiness of riches
It is difficult for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 19:23).

I

Hear this, all you peoples,
give heed, all who dwell in the world,
men both low and high,
rich and poor alike!

My lips will speak words of wisdom.
My heart is full of insight.
I will turn my mind to a parable,
with the harp I will solve my problem.

Why should I fear in evil days
the malice of the foes who surround me,
men who trust in their wealth,
and boast of the vastness of their riches?

For no man can buy his own ransom,
or pay a price to God for his life.
The ransom of his soul is beyond him.
He cannot buy life without end,
nor avoid coming to the grave.

He knows that wise men and fools must both perish
and leave their wealth to others.
Their graves are their homes for ever,
their dwelling place from age to age,
though their names spread wide through the land.

In his riches, man lacks wisdom:
he is like the beasts that are destroyed.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
– as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Ant. You cannot serve both God and mammon.

Ant. 2 Store up for yourselves treasure in heaven, says the Lord.

II

This is the lot of those who trust in themselves,
who have others at their beck and call.
Like sheep they are driven to the grave,
where death shall be their shepherd
and the just shall become their rulers.

With the morning their outward show vanishes
and the grave becomes their home.
But God will ransom me from death
and take my soul to himself.

Then do not fear when a man grows rich,
when the glory of his house increases.
He takes nothing with him when he dies,
his glory does not follow him below.

Though he flattered himself while he lived:
“Men will praise me for all my success,”
yet he will go to join his fathers,
who will never see the light any more.

In his riches, man lacks wisdom:
he is like the beasts that are destroyed.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
– as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Psalm-prayer

Make our mouths speak your wisdom. Lord Jesus. and help us to remember that you became man and redeemed us from death that we might merit the beauty of your light.

Ant. Store up for yourselves treasure in heaven, says the Lord.

Ant. 3 Adoration and glory belong by right to the Lamb who was slain.

Canticle — Revelation 4:11; 5:9, 10, 12
Redemption hymn

O Lord our God, you are worthy
to receive glory and honor and power.

For you have created all things;
by your will they came to be and were made.

Worthy are you, O Lord,
to receive the scroll and break open its seals.

For you were slain;
with your blood you purchased for God
men of every race and tongue,
of every people and nation.

You made of them a kingdom,
and priests to serve our God,
and they shall reign on the earth.

Worthy is the Lamb that was slain
to receive power and riches,
wisdom and strength,
honor and glory and praise.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
– as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Ant. Adoration and glory belong by right to the Lamb who was slain.

READING 1 John 1:5b, 7

God is light;
in him there is no darkness.
If we walk in light,
as he is in the light,
we have fellowship with one another,
and the blood of his Son Jesus cleanses us from all sin.

Sacred Silence (indicated by a bell)
A moment to reflect and receive in our hearts the full resonance of the voice of the Holy Spirit and to unite our personal prayer more closely with the word of God and public voice of the Church.

RESPONSORY

The Word was made man, alleluia, alleluia.
– The Word was made man, alleluia, alleluia.

He lived among us.
– Alleluia, alleluia.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
– The Word was made man, alleluia, alleluia.

CANTICLE OF MARY

Ant. Let us dance with delight in the Lord and let our hearts be filled with rejoicing, for eternal salvation has appeared on the earth, alleluia.

Luke 1:46-55
The soul rejoices in the Lord

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.

From this day all generations will call me blessed:
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name.

He has mercy on those who fear him
in every generation.

He has shown the strength of his arm,
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.

He has cast down the mighty from their thrones,
and has lifted up the lowly.

He has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.

He has come to the help of his servant Israel
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
the promise he made to our fathers,
to Abraham and his children for ever.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now,
and will be for ever. Amen.

Ant. Let us dance with delight in the Lord and let our hearts be filled with rejoicing, for eternal salvation has appeared on the earth, alleluia.

INTERCESSIONS

At the coming of Christ, God’s holy people were made sharers in new life. With joy and gratitude let us say to our Savior:
– May your birth bring joy to the world.

Christ, our life, you came to be the head of your Church,
grant your body growth rooted in charity.
– May your birth bring joy to the world.

Fully human, fully divine, you deserve our adoration,
mold our humanity in your divine image.
– May your birth bring joy to the world.

You became our mediator through your incarnation,
unite your servants in the Church more closely to your work through the holiness of their lives.
– May your birth bring joy to the world.

When you came you inaugurated a new era,
lead all nations to your salvation.
– May your birth bring joy to the world.

By your birth you destroyed the chains of death,
free the dead from all their chains.
– May your birth bring joy to the world.

Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done on earth,
as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us,
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.

Concluding Prayer

O God,
who in the blessed childbearing of the holy Virgin Mary
kept the flesh of your Son
free from the sentence incurred by the human race,
grant, we pray,
that we, who have been taken up into this new creation,
may be freed from the ancient taint of sin.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
– Amen.

DISMISSAL

May the Lord bless us,
protect us from all evil and bring us to everlasting life.
– Amen.

Jan 03, Night Prayer for Tuesday of the 2nd week of Christmas

Ribbon Placement:
Liturgy of the Hours:
Vol I, page 1178
Vol II, Page 1635
Vol III, Page 1278
Vol IV, Page 1242

Christian Prayer:
Page 1044

Night Prayer for Tuesday

God, come to my assistance.
– Lord, make haste to help me.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
– as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.

Examination of conscience:

We are called to have a clear conscience toward God and toward men, in our hearts and in our minds, in our actions and inactions. To do so, it is vital that we examine our conscience daily and to ask for God’s mercy as we fall short and to ask for His strength to do better.

Lord Jesus,
you have shown us the way to the Father:
Lord, have mercy.
– Lord, have mercy.

Lord Jesus,
you have given us the consolation of the truth:
Christ, have mercy.
– Christ, have mercy.

Lord Jesus,
you are the good shepherd,
leading us into everlasting life:
Lord, have mercy.
– Lord, have mercy.

HYMN

The Lord is my shepherd,
I shall not want;
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters;
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness
for His name’s sake.

Even though I walk through the valley
of the shadow of death,
I fear no evil;
for You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You have anointed my head with oil;
My cup overflows.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life;
and I shall dwell in the house of the
Lord forever.

Psalm 23 by Melinda Kirigin-Voss
“Psalm 23? performed by Melinda Kirigin-Voss is available from Amazon.com

PSALMODY

Ant. 1 Do not hide your face from me; in you I put my trust.

Psalm 143
Prayer in distress
Only by faith in Jesus Christ is a man made holy in God’s sight. No observance of the law can achieve this (Galatians 2:16).

Lord, listen to my prayer:
turn your ear to my appeal.
You are faithful, you are just; give answer.
Do not call your servant to judgment
for no one is just in your sight.

The enemy pursues my soul;
he has crushed my life to the ground;
he has made me dwell in darkness
like the dead, long forgotten.
Therefore my spirit fails;
my heart is numb within me.

I remember the days that are past:
I ponder all your works.
I muse on what your hand has wrought
and to you I stretch out my hands.
Like a parched land my soul thirsts for you.

Lord, make haste and answer;
for my spirit fails within me.
Do not hide your face
lest I become like those in the grave.

In the morning let me know your love
for I put my trust in you.
Make me know the way I should walk:
to you I lift up my soul.

Rescue me, Lord, from my enemies;
I have fled to you for refuge.
Teach me to do your will
for you, O Lord, are my God.
Let your good spirit guide me
in ways that are level and smooth.

For your name’s sake, Lord, save my life;
in your justice save my soul from distress.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
– as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Ant. Do not hide your face from me; in you I put my trust.

READING 1 Peter 5:8-9a

Stay sober and alert. Your opponent the devil is prowling like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, solid in your faith.

RESPONSORY

Into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit.
– Into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit.

You have redeemed us, Lord God of truth.
– I commend my spirit.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
– Into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit.

CANTICLE OF SIMEON

Ant. Protect us, Lord, as we stay awake; watch over us as we sleep, that awake, we may keep watch with Christ, and asleep, rest in his peace.

Luke 2:29-32
Christ is the light of the nations and the glory of Israel

Lord, now you let your servant go in peace;
your word has been fulfilled:

my own eyes have seen the salvation
which you have prepared in the sight of every people:

a light to reveal you to the nations
and the glory of your people Israel.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
– as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Ant. Protect us, Lord, as we stay awake; watch over us as we sleep, that awake, we may keep watch with Christ, and asleep, rest in his peace.

Concluding Prayer

Lord,
fill this night with your radiance.
May we sleep in peace and rise with joy
to welcome the light of a new day in your name.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
– Amen.

BLESSING

May the all-powerful Lord grant us a restful night and a peaceful death.
– Amen.

Antiphon or song in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Amid the roses Mary sits and rocks her Jesus-Child
While amid the treetops sighs the breeze so warm and mild
And soft and sweetly sings a bird upon the bough
Ah, Baby, dear one
Slumber now

Happy is Thy laughter; holy is Thy silent rest
Lay Thy head in slumber fondly on Thy mother’s breast
Ah, Baby, dear one
Slumber now

“The Virgin’s Slumber Song” by the Madeleine Cathedral School Choir in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA.

The Most Holy Name of Jesus

The Most Holy Name of Jesus
optional memorial
January 3rd

Christ, Man of Sorrows - school of Jan Mostaert (post-1510) oil on panel
Copyright © National Gallery, London. Used with permission

From apostolic times, the Church has professed that "at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father" (Phil 2:10-11). Through the particular efforts of St. Bernardine of Siena, devotion to the Holy Name of Jesus was promoted through the inscription of the monogram of the Holy Name (IHS) and the addition of the name of Jesus to the Hail Mary. Pope Sixtus V first granted an indulgence for the uttering of the phrase used so often by the present Holy Father, John Paul II and included among the pious invocations of the current Enchiridion Indulgentiarum: "Praised be Jesus Christ!"
Source: Daily Roman Missal, Edited by Rev. James Socías, Midwest Theological Forum, Chicago, Illinois ©2003

Collect:
O God, who founded the salvation of the human race
on the Incarnation of your Word,
give your peoples the mercy they implore,
so that all may know there is no other name to be invoked
but the Name of your Only Begotten Son.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. +Amen.
First Reading: Philippians 2:1-11
So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any incentive of love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfishness or conceit, but in humility count others better than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form He humbled Himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Gospel Reading: Luke 2:21-24
And at the end of eight days, when He was circumcised, He was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before He was conceived in the womb.

And when the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, they brought Him up to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord (as it is written in the law of the Lord, "Every male that opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord") and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the law of the Lord, "a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons."

Excerpt from the Catechism of the Catholic Church
Prayer to Jesus
2665 The prayer of the Church, nourished by the Word of God and the celebration of the liturgy, teaches us to pray to the Lord Jesus. Even though her prayer is addressed above all to the Father, it includes in all the liturgical traditions forms of prayer addressed to Christ. Certain psalms, given their use in the Prayer of the Church, and the New Testament place on our lips and engrave in our hearts prayer to Christ in the form of invocations: Son of God, Word of God, Lord, Savior, Lamb of God, King, Beloved Son, Son of the Virgin, Good Shepherd, our Life, our Light, our Hope, our Resurrection, Friend of mankind. . . .
2666 But the one name that contains everything is the one that the Son of God received in his incarnation: JESUS. The divine name may not be spoken by human lips, but by assuming our humanity The Word of God hands it over to us and we can invoke it: "Jesus," "YHWH saves." The name "Jesus" contains all: God and man and the whole economy of creation and salvation. To pray "Jesus" is to invoke him and to call him within us. His name is the only one that contains the presence it signifies. Jesus is the Risen One, and whoever invokes the name of Jesus is welcoming the Son of God who loved him and who gave himself up for him.
2667 This simple invocation of faith developed in the tradition of prayer under many forms in East and West. The most usual formulation, transmitted by the spiritual writers of the Sinai, Syria, and Mt. Athos, is the invocation, "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on us sinners." It combines the Christological hymn of Philippians 2:6-11 with the cry of the publican and the blind men begging for light. By it the heart is opened to human wretchedness and the Savior's mercy.
2668 The invocation of the holy name of Jesus is the simplest way of praying always. When the holy name is repeated often by a humbly attentive heart, the prayer is not lost by heaping up empty phrases, but holds fast to the word and "brings forth fruit with patience." This prayer is possible "at all times" because it is not one occupation among others but the only occupation: that of loving God, which animates and transfigures every action in Christ Jesus.
2669 The prayer of the Church venerates and honors the Heart of Jesus just as it invokes his most holy name. It adores the incarnate Word and his Heart which, out of love for men, he allowed to be pierced by our sins. Christian prayer loves to follow the way of the cross in the Savior's steps. The stations from the Praetorium to Golgotha and the tomb trace the way of Jesus, who by his holy Cross has redeemed the world.

Litany of the Holy Name of Jesus
V. Lord, have mercy on us.
R. Christ, have mercy on us.
V. Lord, have mercy on us. Jesus, hear us.
R. Jesus, graciously hear us.
V. God the Father of Heaven
R. Have mercy on us.
V. God the Son, Redeemer of the world,
R. Have mercy on us.
V. God the Holy Spirit,
R. Have mercy on us.
V. Holy Trinity, one God,
R. Have mercy on us.
V. Jesus, Son of the living God,
R. Have mercy on us.
V. Jesus, splendor of the Father,
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, brightness of eternal light.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, King of glory.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, sun of justice.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, Son of the Virgin Mary.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, most amiable.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, most admirable.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, the mighty God.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, Father of the world to come.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, angel of great counsel.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, most powerful.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, most patient.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, most obedient.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, meek and humble of heart.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, lover of chastity.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, lover of us.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, God of peace.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, author of life.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, example of virtues.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, zealous lover of souls.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, our God.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, our refuge.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, father of the poor.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, treasure of the faithful.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, good Shepherd.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, true light.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, eternal wisdom.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, infinite goodness.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, our way and our life.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, joy of Angels.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, King of the Patriarchs.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, Master of the Apostles.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, teacher of the Evangelists.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, strength of Martyrs.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, light of Confessors.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, purity of Virgins.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Jesus, crown of Saints.
R. Have mercy on us
V. Be merciful,
R. spare us, O Jesus.
V. Be merciful,
R. graciously hear us, O Jesus.
V. From all evil,
R. deliver us, O Jesus.
V. From all sin,
R. deliver us, O Jesus.
V. From Your wrath,
R. deliver us, O Jesus.
V. From the snares of the devil.
R. deliver us, O Jesus.
V. From the spirit of fornication.
R. deliver us, O Jesus.
V. From everlasting death.
R. deliver us, O Jesus.
V. From the neglect of Your inspirations.
R. deliver us, O Jesus.
V. By the mystery of Your holy Incarnation.
R. deliver us, O Jesus.
V. By Your Nativity.
R. deliver us, O Jesus.
V. By Your Infancy.
R. deliver us, O Jesus.
V. By Your most divine Life.
R. deliver us, O Jesus.
V. By Your labors.
R. deliver us, O Jesus.
V. By Your agony and passion.
R. deliver us, O Jesus.
V. By Your cross and dereliction.
R. deliver us, O Jesus.
V. By Your sufferings.
R. deliver us, O Jesus.
V. By Your death and burial.
R. deliver us, O Jesus.
V. By Your Resurrection.
R. deliver us, O Jesus.
V. By Your Ascension.
R. deliver us, O Jesus.
V. By Your institution of the most Holy Eucharist.
R. deliver us, O Jesus.
V. By Your joys.
R. deliver us, O Jesus.
V. By Your glory.
R. deliver us, O Jesus.
V. Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world,
R. spare us, O Jesus.
V. Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world,
R. graciously hear us, O Jesus.
V. Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world,
R. have mercy on us, O Jesus.
V. Jesus, hear us.
R. Jesus, graciously hear us.
V. Let us pray.
All. O Lord Jesus Christ, You have said, "Ask and you shall receive, seek, and you shall find, knock, and it shall be opened to you." Grant, we beg of You, to us who ask it, the gift of Your most divine love, that we may ever love You with our whole heart, in word and deed, and never cease praising You.
Give us, O Lord, as much a lasting fear as a lasting love of Your Holy Name, for You, who live and are King for ever and ever, never fail to govern those whom You have solidly established in Your love. Amen.

Information: St. Genevieve

Feast Day:	January 3
Born:	422 at Nanterre near Paris, France
Died:	500 at Paris, France
Patron of:	Paris

Interactive Saints for Kids

St. Genevieve

Feast Day: January 03
Born: 422 :: Died: 500

Genevieve was born in Nanterre, a small village four miles from Paris in France. When she was seven years old, Genevieve met Saint Germanus of Auxerre on his way to England.

Her holy face caught his attention when he was preaching and after his sermon he spoke with her and found that she wanted very much to live her life for Jesus. He blessed her, gave her a gold medal and asked her to keep it as a reminder of that day and of God, to whom her life belonged.

Germanus then talked with Genevieve's parents and told them how special their daughter was. After her parents died, Genevieve went to live with her godmother. She spent time praying every day.

Soon she and two other young women took their vows to become nuns before the bishop of Paris and were given their veils. She became very close to Jesus and wanted to bring his goodness to people. Genevieve was a kind, generous person. She went out of her way to do good things for others.

The people of Paris were going to run away from a terrible army coming to attack them. Genevieve stepped forward and encouraged the people to trust in God. She said that if they did penance, they would be spared. The people did what she said, and the fierce army of Attila the Hun suddenly turned back. They did not attack the city at all.

St. Genevieve practiced charity and obedience to God's will every day of her life, not just in times of need. She never gave up trying to do as much good as possible. Faithfulness to Jesus and courage are the special gifts of witness she leaves for us.

One of the best ways for us to help our country is to pray for our leaders. We should ask God to guide them for the good of us all.

My priest was so elated to have a complete special liturgy for The Most Holy Name of Jesus.

Catholic

Almanac:

Tuesday, January 3
Liturgical Color: White
Today is the optional memorial of the Most Holy Name of Jesus. We are reminded of all the graces and gifts we receive from the Father through Jesus. The Council of Lyons first encouraged devotion to the name of Jesus in 1274.

Catholic Culture

Daily Readings for: January 03, 2012
(Readings on USCCB website)

Collect: O God, who founded the salvation of the human race on the Incarnation of your Word, give your peoples the mercy they implore, so that all may know there is no other name to be invoked but the Name of your Only Begotten Son. Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Christmas: January 3rd

Optional Memorial of the Most Holy Name of Jesus

Today the Church celebrates the optional memorial of the Most Holy Name of Jesus. According to the 1962 Missal of Bl. John XXIII the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite this feast is celebrated on January 2. In the liturgical revisions of Vatican II, the feast was removed, though a votive Mass to the Holy Name of Jesus had been retained for devotional use. With the release of the revised Roman Missal in March 2002, the feast was restored as an optional memorial in the Ordinary Form on January 3.

The Church reveals to us the wonders of the Incarnate Word by singing the glories of His name. The name of Jesus means Savior; it had been shown in a dream to Joseph together with its meaning and to Our Lady at the annunciation by the Archangel Gabriel.

Devotion to the Holy Name is deeply rooted in the Sacred Scriptures, especially in the Acts of the Apostles. It was promoted in a special manner by St. Bernard, St. Bernardine of Siena, St. John Capistrano and by the Franciscan Order. It was extended to the whole Church in 1727 during the pontificate of Innocent XIII. The month of January has traditionally been dedicated to the Holy Name of Jesus.

According to the 1962 Missal of Bl. John XXIII the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, the feast of the Holy Name of Jesus which is kept on the First Sunday in the year; but if this Sunday falls on January 1, 6, or 7, the feast is kept on January 2.

The Tenth Day of Christmas

Holy Name of Jesus
This feast marks no progress in the development of the Church year. It merely embellishes the occasion just observed when the Child received the Name Jesus as had been foretold by the angel. The feast is meant to impress on us Christians the dignity of the Holy Name. It is a relatively new feast, stemming out of devotional piety. Nevertheless, it is not difficult to find in it some liturgical or ancient Christian dogma. What did a name signify originally? The name should express the nature of a thing. Thus Adam in paradise gave the animals names in accordance with their being. Among the Jews God's name expressed His essence, Yahweh, i.e., I (alone) am who am (and cause all else to be). The Jews had the highest respect for the name of God, a reverence that finds continuation in the Our Father: "Hallowed be Thy Name."

Persons who played prominent roles in the history of salvation often received their names from God Himself. Adam — man of the earth; Eve — mother of all the living; Abraham — father of many nations; Peter — the rock. The Savior's precursor was given the name God assigned him. According to divine precedent, then, the name of the Redeemer should not be accidental, of human choosing, but given by God Himself. For His name should express His mission. We read in Sacred Scripture how the angel Gabriel revealed that name to Mary: "You shall call His name Jesus." And to St. Joseph the angel not merely revealed the name but explained its meaning: "You shall call His name Jesus, for He shall save His people from their sins." The Messiah should not only be the savior, but should be called Savior. With Jesus, therefore, the name actually tells the purpose of His existence. This is why we must esteem His name as sacred. Whenever we pronounce it, we ought to bow our heads; for the very name reminds us of the greatest favor we have ever received, salvation.

Excerpted from The Church's Year of Grace, Pius Parsch

Things to Do:

St. Bernardine of Siena (feast May 20) promoted devotion to the Holy Name of Jesus. From the Catholic Culture Library: St. Bernardino Fostered Holy Name Devotion.

The Word Among Us

Meditation: Psalm 98:1,3-6

“Sing a new song to the Lord!” Psalm 98:1)

Yes, sing! Sing joyfully. Sing joy, fully. God has done wonderful things in the past year—things we will know completely only when we are with him in heaven. Still, we can sing joyfully because we know he is all-good, all the time. He is all-wise and all-loving. Even though we don’t always see what he is doing, we know it is good and loving and wise. So sing! Sing thankfully, boldly, with all the praise and joy you can muster.

Sing joyfully about what you hope and expect him to do this new year. God has plans for your life. No matter what age you are, it’s never too late for the good things he has in store for you. Ask him for a new song—a word, or phrase, or Scripture passage, or even a real song—to give you direction for the year. He is the Good Shepherd, who loves and leads you. He will guide you in the paths he has planned for you and give you a new song to sing along the way.

Sing aloud, yes, but don’t limit yourself to what your voice can do. Sing with your pen. Write down what you want to praise the Lord for. Jot down your hopes, dreams, desires for this year. Sing with your paint brush—paint your praise, joy, and thanksgiving. Sing with your musical instrument or your feet. Dance, as David did before the ark of the Lord (2 Samuel 6:5,16). We are wonderfully made, so we can praise the Lord in song or with any of the other talents he has given us.

What do you love to do? Do it intentionally today, as a way to express your joy, praise, and awe of the Lord. As you begin, tell the Lord, “This is for you, God!” And “Beloved, we are God’s children!” —1 John 3:2 if you find it too difficult, ask the Holy Spirit to put a new song in your heart. Ask him for a song that is not there now, one that perhaps has never been there. You are created to sing before the Lord. Be expectant. He will teach you what to do and how to do it!

“Father, you are wonderful and loving and kind. Fill me with a new song today, a song of joy and hope.”

1 John 2:29–3:6; John 1:29-34

A Christian Pilgrim

THE HOLY NAME OF JESUS

I

know from past experiences, especially when I am most weak and powerless, what instantaneous help and power there is for me if I pronounced the name of Jesus reverently and confidently. Jesus is ever ready to cooperate with me if I but resolve to cooperate with Him for my redemption and salvation. The name of the Living God “made flesh” when I appeal to it makes contact with the inexhaustible resources of God as:

1. My Physician. In these days of universal need, He, my beloved and most powerful physician, is ever at my beck and call.

2. My Master. Jesus owns me, body and soul, by many titles – that of Creator, Redeemer, Sanctifier – yet He daily acts so often as my Servant,

3. My Counselor. “I shall be with you all days.” He promised it; He is true to that promise. I can always consult Him.

4. My Judge. “I would rather be judged by Christ than by my own mother,” said a saintly soul.

5. My Lover. All that I am, all that I have and see, all are love-tokens to me from Jesus, my Lover – ‘by whom were all things made, and without Him was made nothing that was made.”

Short Prayer: Dearest Jesus, let me carefully preserve Your sacred Name in my heart, that it may ever be inflamed with the fire of Your divine love. Let me ever remember that in all my weaknesses, in all my sorrows and failures, I possess a saving remedy in the holy Name of Jesus. Amen.

Adapted from A THOUGHT A DAY, pages 6-7

John
	English: Douay-Rheims	Latin: Vulgata Clementina	Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000)
	John 1
29.	The next day, John saw Jesus coming to him, and he saith: Behold the Lamb of God, behold him who taketh away the sin of the world.	Altera die vidit Joannes Jesum venientem ad se, et ait : Ecce agnus Dei, ecce qui tollit peccatum mundi.	τη επαυριον βλεπει [ο ιωαννης] τον ιησουν ερχομενον προς αυτον και λεγει ιδε ο αμνος του θεου ο αιρων την αμαρτιαν του κοσμου
30.	This is he, of whom I said: After me there cometh a man, who is preferred before me: because he was before me.	Hic est de quo dixi : Post me venit vir qui ante me factus est : quia prior me erat :	ουτος εστιν περι ου εγω ειπον οπισω μου ερχεται ανηρ ος εμπροσθεν μου γεγονεν οτι πρωτος μου ην
31.	And I knew him not, but that he may be made manifest in Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with water.	et ego nesciebam eum, sed ut manifestetur in Israël, propterea veni ego in aqua baptizans.	καγω ουκ ηδειν αυτον αλλ ινα φανερωθη τω ισραηλ δια τουτο ηλθον εγω εν τω υδατι βαπτιζων
32.	And John gave testimony, saying: I saw the Spirit coming down, as a dove from heaven, and he remained upon him.	Et testimonium perhibuit Joannes, dicens : Quia vidi Spiritum descendentem quasi columbam de cælo, et mansit super eum.	και εμαρτυρησεν ιωαννης λεγων οτι τεθεαμαι το πνευμα καταβαινον ωσει περιστεραν εξ ουρανου και εμεινεν επ αυτον
33.	And I knew him not; but he who sent me to baptize with water, said to me: He upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining upon him, he it is that baptizeth with the Holy Ghost.	Et ego nesciebam eum : sed qui misit me baptizare in aqua, ille mihi dixit : Super quem videris Spiritum descendentem, et manentem super eum, hic est qui baptizat in Spiritu Sancto.	καγω ουκ ηδειν αυτον αλλ ο πεμψας με βαπτιζειν εν υδατι εκεινος μοι ειπεν εφ ον αν ιδης το πνευμα καταβαινον και μενον επ αυτον ουτος εστιν ο βαπτιζων εν πνευματι αγιω
34.	And I saw, and I gave testimony, that this is the Son of God.	Et ego vidi : et testimonium perhibui quia hic est Filius Dei.	καγω εωρακα και μεμαρτυρηκα οτι ουτος εστιν ο υιος του θεου

29. The next day John sees Jesus coming to him, and said, Behold the Lamb of God, which takes away the sin of the world.
30. This is he of whom I said, After me comes a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me.
31. And I knew him not: but that he should be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with water.

ORIGEN; After this testimony, Jesus is seen coming to John, not only persevering in his confession, but also advanced in goodness: as is intimated by the second day. Wherefore it is said, The next day John sees Jesus coming to him. Long before this, the Mother of Jesus, as soon as she had conceived Him, went to see the mother of John then pregnant; and as soon as the sound of Mary's salutation reached the ears of Elisabeth, John leaped in the womb: but now the Baptist himself after his testimony sees Jesus coming. Men are first prepared by hearing from others, and then see with their own eyes. The example of Mary going to see Elisabeth her interior, and the Son of God going to see the Baptist, should teach us modesty and fervent charity to our inferiors. What place the Savior came from when He came to the Baptist we are not told here; but we find it in Matthew, Then comes Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John to be baptized of him.

CHRYS. Or; Matthew relates directly Christ's coming to His baptism, John His coming a second time subsequent to His baptism, as appears from what follows: I saw the Spirit descending, &c. The Evangelists have divided the periods of the history between them; Matthew passing over the part before John's imprisonment, and hastening to that event; John chiefly dwelling on what took place before the imprisonment. Thus he says, The next day John sees Jesus coming to him. But why did He come to him the next day after His baptism? Having been baptized with the multitude, He wished to prevent any from thinking that He came to John for the same reason that others did, viz. to confess His sins, and be washed in the river to repentance.

He comes therefore to give John an opportunity of correcting this mistake; which John accordingly did correct; viz. by those words, Behold the Lamb of God, which takes away the sin of the world. For He Who was so pure, as to be able to absolve other men's sins, evidently could not have come thither for the sake of confessing His own; but only to give John an opportunity of speaking of Him. He came too the next day, that those who had heard the former testimonies of John, might hear them again more plainly; and other besides. For he said, Behold the Lamb of God, signifying that He was the one of old sought after, and reminding them of the prophecy of Isaiah, and of the shadows of the Mosaic law, in order that through the figure he might the easier lead them to the substance.

AUG. If the Lamb of God is innocent, and John is the lamb, must he not be innocent? But all men come of that stock of which David sings sorrowing, Behold, I was conceived in wickedness. He then alone was the Lamb, who was not thus conceived; for He was not conceived in wickedness, nor in sin did His mother bear Him in her womb, Whom a virgin conceived, a virgin brought forth, because that in faith she conceived, and in faith received.

ORIGEN; But whereas five kinds of animals are offered in the temple, three beasts of the field, a calf, a sheep, and a goat; and two fowls of the air, a turtle dove and a pigeon; and of the sheep kind three are introduced, the ram, the ewe, the lamb; of these three he mentions only the lamb; the lamb, as we know, being offered in the daily sacrifice, one in the morning, and one in the evening. But what other daily offering can there be, that can be meant to be offered by a reasonable nature, except the perfect Word, typically called the Lamb?

This sacrifice, which is offered up as soon as the soul begins to be enlightened, shall be accounted as a morning sacrifice, referring to the frequent exercise of the mind in divine things; for the soul cannot continually apply to the highest objects because of its union with an earthly and gross body. By this Word too, Which is Christ the Lamb, we shall be able to reason on many things, and shall in a manner attain to Him in the evening, while engaged with things of the body. But He Who offered the lamb for a sacrifice, was God hid in human form, the great Priest, He who said below, No man takes it (My life) from Me, but I lay it down of Myself: whence this name, the Lamb of God: for He carrying our sorrows, and taking away the sins of the whole world, has undergone death, as it were baptism. For God suffers no fault to pass uncorrected; but punishes it by the sharpest discipline.

THEOPHYL. He is called the Lamb of God, because God the Father accepted His death for our salvation, or, in other words, because He delivered Him up to death for our sakes. For just as we say, This is the offering of such a man, meaning the offering made by him; in the same sense Christ is called the Lamb of God Who gave His Son to die for our salvation. And whereas that typical lamb did not take away any man's sin, this one has taken away the sin of the whole world, rescuing it from the danger it was in from the wrath of God.

Behold Him Who takes away the sin of the world: he said not, who will take, but, Who takes away the sin of the world; as if He were always doing this. For He did not then only take it away when He suffered, but from that time to the present, He takes it away; not by being always crucified, for He made one sacrifice for sins, but by ever washing it by means of that sacrifice.

GREG. But then only will sin be entirely taken away from the human race, when our corruption has been turned to a glorious incorruption. We cannot be free from sin, so long as we are held in the death of the body.

THEOPHYL. Why does he say the sin of the world, not sins? Because he wished to express sin universally: just as we say commonly, that man was cast out of paradise; meaning the whole human race.

GLOSS; Or by the sin of the world is meant original sin, which is common to the whole world: which original sin, as well as the sins of every one individually, Christ by His grace remits.

AUG. For He Who took not sin from our nature, He it is Who takes away our sin. Some say, We take away the sins of men, because we are holy; for if he, who baptizes, is not holy, how can he take away the other's sin, seeing he himself is full of sin? Against these reasoners let us point to the text; Behold Him Who takes away the sin of the world; in order to do away with such presumption in man towards man.

ORIGEN; As there was a connection between the other sacrifices of the law, and the daily sacrifice of the lamb, in the same way the sacrifice of this Lamb has its reflection in the pouring out of the blood of the Martyrs, by whose patience, confession, and zeal for goodness, the machinations of the ungodly are frustrated.

THEOPHYL. John having said above to those who came from the Pharisees, that there stood one among them whom they knew not, he here points Him out to the persons thus ignorant: This is He of whom I said, After me comes a man which is preferred before me. Our Lord is called a man, in reference to His mature age, being thirty years old when He was baptized: or in a spiritual sense, as the Spouse of the Church; in which sense St. Paul speaks, I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.

AUG. He comes after me, because he was born after me: He is made before me, because He is preferred to me.

GREG. He explains the reason of this superiority, in what follows: For He was before me; as if his meaning was; And this is the reason of His being superior to me, though born after me, viz. that He is not circumscribed by the time of His nativity. He Who was born of His mother in time, was begotten of His Father out of time.

THEOPHYL. Attend, O Arius. He said not, He was created before me, but He was before me. Let the false sect of Paul of Samosata attend. They will see that He did not derive His original existence from Mary; for if He derived the beginning of His being from the Virgin, how could He have been before His precursor? it being evident that the precursor preceded Christ by six months, according to the human birth.

CHRYS. That He might not seem however to give His testimony from any motive of friendship or kindred, in consequence of his being related to our Lord according to the flesh, he says, I knew Him not. John could not of course know Him, having lived in the desert. And the miraculous events of Christ's childhood, the journey of the Magi, and such like, were now a long time past; John having been quite an infant, when they happened. And throughout the whole of the interval, He had been absolutely unknown: insomuch that John proceeds, But that He should, be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with water. (And hence it is clear that the miracles said to have been performed by Christ in His childhood, are false and fictitious.

For if Jesus had performed miracles at this early age, he would not have been unknown to John, nor would the multitude have wanted a teacher to point Him out.) Christ Himself then did not want baptism; nor was that washing for any other reason, than to give a sign beforehand of faith in Christ. For John said not, in order to change men, and deliver from sin, but, that he should be made manifest in Israel, have I come baptizing. But would it not have been lawful for him to preach, and bring crowds together, without baptizing? Yes: but this was the easier way, for he would not have collected such numbers, had he preached without baptizing.

AUG. Now when our Lord became known, it was unnecessary to prepare a way for Him; for to those who knew Him, He became His own way. And therefore John's baptism did not last long, but only so long as to show our Lord's humility. Our Lord received baptism from a servant, in order to give us such a lesson of humility as might prepare us for receiving the grace of baptism, And that the servant's baptism might not be set before the Lord's, others were baptized with it; who after receiving it, had to receive our Lord's baptism: whereas those who first received our Lord's baptism, did not receive the servant's after.

32. And John bore record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him.
33. And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom you shall see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptize with the Holy Ghost.
34. And I saw, and bore record that this is the Son of God.

CHRYS. John having made a declaration, so astonishing to all his hearers, viz. that He, whom he pointed out, did of Himself take away the sins of the world, confirms it by a reference to the Father and the Holy Spirit. For John might be asked, how did you know Him? Wherefore he replies beforehand, by the descent of the Holy Spirit: And John bore record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him.

AUG. This was not however the first occasion of Christ's receiving the unction of the Holy Spirit: viz. Its descent upon Him at His baptism; herein He condescended to prefigure His body, the Church, wherein those who are baptized receive preeminently the Holy Spirit. For it would be absurd to suppose that at thirty years old, (which was His age, when He was baptized by John,) He received for the first time the Holy Spirit: and that, when He came to that baptism, as He was without sin, so was He without the Holy Spirit. For if even of His servant and forerunner John it is written, He shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from His mother's womb; if He, though sprung from His father's seed, yet received the Holy Ghost, when as yet He was only formed in the womb; what ought we to think and believe of Christ, whose very flesh had not a carnal but spiritual conception?

AUG. We do not attribute to Christ only the possession of a real body, and say that the Holy Spirit assumed a false appearance to men's eyes: for the Holy Spirit could no more, in consistency with His nature, deceive men, than could the Son of God. The Almighty God, Who made every creature out of nothing, could as easily form a real body of a dove, without the instrumentality of other doves, as He made a real body in the womb of the Virgin, without the seed of the male.

AUG. The Holy Ghost was made to appear visibly in two ways: as a dove, upon our Lord at His baptism; and as a flame upon His disciples, when they were met together: the former shape denoting simplicity, the latter fervency. The dove intimates that souls sanctified by the Spirit should have no guile; the fire, that in that simplicity there should not be coldness. Nor let it disturb you, that the tongues are cloven; fear no division; unity is assured to us in the dove. It was meet then that the Holy Spirit should be thus manifested descending upon our Lord; in order that every one who had the Spirit might know, that he ought to be simple as a dove, and be in sincere peace with the brethren. The kisses of doves represent this peace. Ravens kiss, but they tear also; but the nature of the dove is most alien to tearing. Ravens feed on the dead, but the dove eats nothing but the fruits of the earth. If doves moan in their love, marvel not that He Who appeared in the likeness of a dove, the Holy Spirit, makes intercession for us with groanings that cannot be uttered. The Holy Spirit however groans not in Himself, but in us: He makes us to groan. And he who groans, as knowing that, so long as He is under the burden of this mortality, he is absent from the Lord, groans well: it is the Spirit that has taught him to groan. But many groan because of earthly calamities; because of losses which disquiet them, or bodily sickness which weigh heavily on them: they groan not, as does the dove. What then could more fitly represent the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of unity, than the dove? as He said Himself to His reconciled Church, My dove is one. What could better express humility, than the simplicity and moaning of a dove? Wherefore on this occasion it was that there appeared the very most Holy Trinity, the Father in the voice which said, You are My beloved Son; the Holy Spirit in the likeness of the dove. In that Trinity the Apostles were sent to baptize, i.e. in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.

GREG. He said, Abode upon Him: for the Holy Spirit visits all the faithful; but on the Mediator alone does He abide for ever in a peculiar manner; never leaving the Son's Humanity, even as He proceeds Himself from the Son's Divinity. But when the disciples are told of the same Spirit, He shall dwell with you, how is the abiding of the Spirit a peculiar sign of Christ? This will appear if we distinguish between the different gifts of the Spirit. As regards those gifts which are necessary for attaining to life, the Holy Spirit ever abides in all the elect; such are gentleness, humility, faith, hope, charity: but with respect to those, which have for their object, not our own salvation, but that of others, he does not always abide, but sometimes withdraws, and ceases to exhibit them; that men may be more humble in the possession of His gifts. But Christ had all the gifts of the Spirit, uninterruptedly always.

CHRYS. Should any however think that Christ really wanted the Holy Spirit, in the way that we do, he corrects this notion also, by informing us that the descent of the Holy Ghost took place only for the purpose of manifesting Christ: And I knew Him not: but He that sent me to baptize with water, the same said to me, Upon whom you shall see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, the same is He which baptizes with the Holy Ghost.

AUG. But who sent John? If we say the Father, we say true; if we say the Son, we say true. But it would be truer to say, the Father and the Son. How then knew he not Him, by Whom he was sent? For if he knew not Him, by Whom he wished to be baptized, it was rash in him to say, I have need to be baptized by You. So then he knew Him; and why said he, I knew Him not?

CHRYS. When he said, I knew Him not, he is speaking of time past, not of the time of his baptism, when he forbade Him, saying, I have need to be baptized of You.

AUG. Let us turn to the other Evangelists, who relate the matter more clearly, and we shall find most satisfactorily, that the dove descended when our Lord ascended from the water. If then the dove descended after baptism, but John said before the baptism, I have need to be baptized of You, he knew Him before His baptism also. How then said he, I knew him not, but He which sent me to baptize? Was this the first revelation made to John of Christ's person, or was it not rather a fuller disclosure of what had been already revealed? John knew the Lord to be the Son of God, knew that He would baptize with the Holy Ghost: for before Christ came to the river, many having come together to hear John, he said unto them, He that comes after me is mightier than I: He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire. What then? He did not know that our Lord (lest Paul or Peter might say, my baptism, as we find Paul did say, my Gospel,) would have and retain to Himself the power of baptism, the ministering of it however passing to good and bad indiscriminately. What hindrance is the badness of the minister, when the Lord is good? So then we baptize again after John's baptism; after a homicide's we baptize not: because John gave his own baptism, the homicide gives Christ's; which is so holy a sacrament, that not even a homicide's ministration can pollute it. Our Lord could, had He so willed, have given power to any servant of His to give baptism as it were in His own stead; and to the baptism, thus transferred to the servant, have imparted the same power, that it would have had, when given by Himself. But this He did not choose to do; that the hope of the baptized might be directed to Him, Who had baptized them; He wished not the servant to place hope in the servant. And again, had He given this power to servants, there would have been as many baptisms as servants; as there had been the baptism of John, so should we have had the baptism of Paul and of Peter. It is by this power then, which Christ retains in His own possession exclusively, that the unity of the Church is established; of which it is said, My dove is one. A man may have a baptism besides the dove; but that any besides the dove should profit, is impossible.

CHRYS. The Father having sent forth a voice proclaiming the Son, the Holy Spirit came besides, bringing the voice upon the head of Christ, in order that no one present might think that what was said of Christ, was said of John. But it will be asked: How was it that the Jews believed not, if they saw the Spirit? Such sights however require the mental vision, rather than the bodily. If those who saw Christ working miracles were so drunken with malice, that they denied what their own eyes had seen, how could the appearance of the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove overcome their incredulity?

Some say however that the sight was not visible to all, but only to John, and the more devotional part. But even if the descent of the Spirit, as a dove, was visible to the outward eye, it does not follow that because all saw it, all understood it. Zacharias himself, Daniel, Ezechiel, and Moses saw many things, appealing to their senses, which no one else saw: and therefore John adds, And I saw and bore record that this is the Son of God. He had called Him the Lamb before, and said that He would baptize with the Spirit; but he had no where called Him the Son before.

AUG. It was necessary that the Only Son of God should baptize, not an adopted son. Adopted sons are ministers of the Only Son: but though they have the ministration, the Only one alone has the power.

Catena Aurea John 1

St. John the Forerunner of the Lord

Marriage = One Man and One Woman

Til' Death Do Us Part

Daily Marriage Tip for January 3, 2012:

“On the 10th Day of Christmas my true love gave to me – 10 Lords-a-Leaping.” Leap to each other’s beck and call today. If you both do it equally, you’ll either have fun trying to outdo each other, or simply bump into each other. Either way, laugh.

Vultus Christi

The Holy Name of Jesus and the Holy Face

By

Father Mark

on January 2, 2012 8:06 AM |

Deus, qui unigenitum Filium tuum
constituisti humani generis Salvatorem
et Jesum vocari jussisti:
concede propitius;
ut, cujus sanctum nomen veneramur in terris,
ejus quoque aspectu perfruamur in caelis.

O God, who didst constitute Thine only-begotten Son
the Saviour of mankind,
and didst command that He should be called JESUS:
grant in Thy kindness
that our heart's joy in heaven may be the Face of Him
Whose Holy Name we venerate on earth.

The Collect for the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus rather ingeniously brings together the Name of Jesus with His Holy Face. While the latin aspectus (used in the Collect above) can mean the sight or appearance of someone, it can also refer to a person's countenance or to the expression of his face.

Friendship with Our Lord Jesus Christ

Nothing is more personal to an individual than his name and his face. We don't consider our knowledge of another person really significant until we can put a name to his face, and a face to his name. So too, our friendship with the Lord Jesus Christ is not significant until we have begun, by the grace of the Holy Spirit, to associate the Holy Name of Jesus with His adorable Face, and His adorable Face with His Holy Name.

This is the very grace that was given in superabundant measure to the Carmelite of Tours, France, Sister Marie de Saint-Pierre (1816-1848) and to her saintly friend in the world, the lawyer, Monsieur Léon Papin Dupont (1797-1876). How did the Carmel of Tours, and the reception room of Monsieur Dupont become centres of devotion to the Holy Face of Jesus?

The Benedictine-Carmelite Connection

In the spring of 1851 the Benedictines of Perpetual Adoration of the Most Blessed Sacrament of the Monastery of Arras (daughters of Mother Mectilde de Bar), being already devoted to the Holy Face through the influence of Saint Gertrude the Great, gave the Carmel of Tours several reproductions of the image of the Holy Face venerated in Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome. (From the Carmel of Tours the devotion would reach the Carmel of Lisieux where it became a profound influence on Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus and of the Holy Face, Doctor of the Church.) This particular image of the Holy Face became famous after an astonishing miracle that took place in January 1849, during the exile of Blessed Pope Pius IX at Gaeta.

The Roman Miracle of the Holy Face: Epiphany 1849

It was customary on the feast of the Epiphany to expose for the veneration of the faithful the "Veronica's Veil" preserved with other sacred relics in the Vatican Basilica. The "Veil" was darkened by age, and the features of Our Lord's sacred countenance were no longer visible. On the third day of the exposition of the relic, before the eyes of numerous witnesses, the image of the Holy Face took on vivid colours and, in the midst of an unearthly light, became clearly visible, and this for three hours. The expression on the Holy Face was one of profound sorrow and of love. Alerted to the prodigy, the Canons of Saint Peter's ordered the bells rung, summoning the faithful to see the miraculous sign. A Notary Apostolic was called to take the depositions of the eyewitnesses; he drew up a document attesting to the miracle, which was then placed in the archives of the Vatican Basilica.

Enter Monsieur Dupont, the Holy Man of Tours

Once news of the miracle spread, people everywhere began requesting reproductions of the Sacred Countenance of Our Lord as seen on the Holy Veil of Saint Peter's Basilica. A number of these were printed on silk and linen, marked with a red wax seal of authenticity, and distributed from Rome. Several of these reproductions were sent to the Benedictine nuns of Arras in France; they in turn sent some of them to the Carmel of Tours. On Palm Sunday 1851, the Mother Prioress of the Carmel of Tours gave two of the reproductions to Monsieur Léon Papin-Dupont. Without losing any time, the next day, Holy Monday, he entrusted the two images to a workman in order to have them suitably framed. He gave the more elegantly framed of the two to the Men's Confraternity of Nocturnal Adoration in Tours; the other he kept for himself. On Holy Wednesday, Monsieur Dupont hung the framed image in a recess to the left of the chimney in his room. In front of it, on a chest, there was a chest upon which a votive lamp might be placed. Listen to Monsieur Dupont explain what happened:

After having had framed this terrible proof of the ravages of sin, I placed this Holy Face in my room, to the left of my chimney in the recess, just above a little chest suitable to receive a lamp. Several pious images found place there as well. It was Holy Wednesday. No sooner I had installed it, than I was struck interiorly by a sudden sentiment rising from the bottom of my heart. "Can this image of the Divine Face of the Saviour of men be exposed," said I to myself, "in the house of a Christian during this great week of the Passion, without an outward sign of respect, adoration, and love being given to it? No, certainly not, it shall not be so." And this is how I had, all of a sudden, the thought to light this lamp before the Holy Face, with the intention of leaving it burning only for the rest of Holy Week. Immediately I carried out my thought; but soon there came to me another. This room was the one in which I was accustomed to receive all those who came to visit me, or who needed to speak to me. It was there that I had installed my desk. "Everyone," I thought, "will ask me why there should be a lamp burning in daylight. I will respond, it is to teach those who come to my house that when the affair for which they came has been addressed, they have only to withdraw or speak of God." And I was of a mind to write these words as a kind of commentary on a card of paper, that I would place on my desk to show when the need would arise: "One is free in one's own home. In my home, after treating of the affair for which one came, one must either leave or speak of the things of God."

That day, and the day after, passed without anyone posing me a question. Some paid no attention. Others thought that I had had there a very pious idea. On Good Friday a traveling salesman, having forced my door to propose some Bordeaux wines, had my response, and was so surprised by it that I had to repeat to him twice. There was my opprtunity to speak to him of religion. He stayed listening to me for over an hour. Having come into my house indifferent, at best, he left it, very nearly converted, taking away with faith some water from La Salette.

The next day, that is Holy Saturday, Our Lord began to make His intentions known, and this is how He did it. I received the visited of a very pious person whom I knew, a Miss X. She suffered from an affliction of the eyes; entering my room, she complained loudly of a lancing pain in her eyes due to the cold wind that was blowing and filling the air with dust. She was coming to see him about business. Being occupied in writing, I invited her to pray to the Holy Face while waiting to see me. She took advantage of the opportunity to ask for her healing. In a moment I had joined her. I knelt down and we prayed together. Upon getting up, it occurred to me to say to her, "Put a little of the oil of this lamp on your eyes." She dipped her finger into the oil, rubbed her eyes with it and, taking a chair to sit down, said in astonishment, "My eyes no longer hurt me." At end of her visit, I had to give her a little oil from the lamp to take home because she was leaving for Richelieu, her usual place of residence.

Cures and Graces

From that day forward the life of Monsieur Dupont became an uninterrupted flow of miracles, healings, and graces attributed to the Holy Face of Jesus, and to the pious use of the oil that burned in the lamp before it. He recounts that on the following Easter Tuesday a young man of the town came on an errand; one of his legs was injured, he walked painfully and limped. Monsieur Dupont thought that if he applied some of the oil burning in the lamp, and prayed to the Holy Face of Jesus, the young man might obtain some relief. This he did. Immediately the young man was healed and began to run around the garden with the greatest ease.

The Lamp Burns On

Monsieur Dupont considered that he intended to keep the oil lamp burning before the Holy Face only during Holy Week, but after these experiences, he couldn't bring himself to remove it. Soon thereafter it was Our Blessed Lady's month of May, another reason to keep the lamp burning. After that came June, the month of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and July, the month of the Most Precious Blood. Monsieur Dupont knew that it would not at all do to allow the lamp to go out during months dedicated to the mysteries of the Redemption. Graces and favours began to abound. More than twenty persons were healed after having prayed to the Holy Face of Jesus, and used oil from the lamp. A movement of devotion to the Holy Face was born. The faithful would gather in front of the image of the Holy Face, together with Monsieur Dupont, to recite the Litanies of the Holy Face composed by Sister Marie de Saint-Pierre, cloistered in the nearby Carmel.

In the Healing Radiance of the Holy Face

Prodigies began to multiply. Healings of all sorts took place: from cancers, from ulcers both external and internal, from deafness, from cataracts, and from sprains. By December 2, 1852 Monsieur Dupont had distributed more than eight-thousand little vials of oil from the lamp. Crowds began coming to his door. On certain Saturdays more than three-hundred people crowded into his reception room. The greatest wonder of all was that, for all of these people, their devotion to the Holy Face of Jesus was crowned by a good Confession and fervent Holy Communion.

Miracles continued to abound. Until his death in 1876, Leon Papin-Dupont noted each miracle worked by the Holy Face of Jesus in a register kept for that purpose. To his great confusion, letters would sometimes arrive addressed "To the Wonderworker of Tours" or "To the Holy Man of Tours." Like the Curé of Ars hiding behind the intercession of Saint Philomena, and like Saint André Bessette hiding behind that of Saint Joseph, Monsieur Dupont sought only to disappear into the glory of the Holy Face of Jesus. Today, Monsieur Dupont's room, having been transformed into the Oratory of the Holy Face (8 rue Bernard Palissy, 37000 Tours, France) remains a place of pilgrimage and of prayer. Dominican Fathers of the Province of France, now living in the home of Monsieur Dupont, are charged with the pastoral care of pilgrims to the Oratory of the Holy Face.

A Devotion Confirmed by the Sacred Liturgy

For Monsieur Dupont and for Sister Marie de Saint-Pierre, devotion to the Holy Face was inseparable from love for, and faith in, the adorable Name of Jesus. The layman and the Carmelite demonstrated in their piety the very association made by the Church in the Collect for the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus.

Vultus Christi

The Name of Jesus Makes a Contemplative Man

By

Father Mark

on January 2, 2012 8:59 AM |

Richard Rolle

My favourite representative of devotion to the Holy Name of Jesus is the delightfully eccentric and utterly incandescent Richard Rolle, a mystic of fourteenth century England. Richard Rolle associated the Name of Jesus with three things: calor, heat; dulcor, sweetness; and canor, song. Listen to his teaching:

If you will be well with God, and have grace to rule your life, and come to the joy of love: this name Jesus, fasten it so fast in your heart that it come never out of your thought. And when you speak to him, and through custom say, "Jesus," it shall be in your ear, joy; in your mouth; honey; and in your heart, melody: for men shall think joy to hear that name be named, sweetness to speak it, mirth, and song to think it.

If you think the name "Jesus" continually, and hold it firmly, it purges your sin, and kindles your heart; it clarifies your soul, it removes anger and does away slowness. It wounds in love and fulfills charity.

It chases the devil, and puts out dread. It opens heaven, and makes a contemplative man. Have Jesus in mind, for that puts all vices and phantoms out from the lover.

Into Modern Times

The spirituals of the mystical invasion of the Grand Siècle -- Bérulle, Olier, Marie de l'Incarnation, and a multitude of others -- were enamoured of the Sacred Name of Jesus. Practices and devotions proliferated in honour of the Holy Name.

Across the Channel, persecuted Irish Catholics and English recusants sustained their faith by repeating the invocation: Ihesu, Ihesu, Ihesu, esto mihi Jhesus -- "Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, be to me a Jesus." At the Carmel of Tours in the nineteenth century, Sister Marie de Saint-Pierre and her lay collaborator, the saintly Monsieur Dupont, associated the Holy Name of Jesus with devotion to the Holy Face, giving rise to a popular movement of reparation and adoration that continues into the present day.

In every generation the Holy Spirit has whispered the adorable Name of Jesus to the Churches, inspiring new expressions of what remains unchanged from age to age, the confession of Saint Peter in the Acts of the Apostles: "There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other Name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved" (Ac 4:12).

Regnum Christi

Be Inspired!

U. S. A. | SPIRITUAL LIFE | SPIRITUALITY

Christmas Weekday (January 3, 2012).

January 3, 2012
Christmas Weekday

John 1:29-34
John the Baptist saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. He is the one of whom I said, ´A man is coming after me who ranks ahead of me because he existed before me.´ I did not know him, but the reason why I came baptizing with water was that he might be made known to Israel.” John testified further, saying, “I saw the Spirit come down like a dove from the sky and remain upon him. I did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ´On whomever you see the Spirit come down and remain, he is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.´ Now I have seen and testified that he is the Son of God.”

Introductory Prayer: Lord Jesus, I know that all Christians are called to proclaim you with their lives and to follow the path you have taught. I want to grow closer to you and to be more the person you want me to be. I love you and long to be transformed by your grace!

Petition: Holy Spirit, help me to be attentive and docile to your inspirations.

1. Trust in the Lord and Let Him Lead You: Although John the Baptist knew that he was sent as the Precursor of the Messiah, he did not initially know who the Messiah would be. But he did not let uncertainty about the details stop him. He knew that God had a plan and that he was called to play a part in it; as soon as he knew what direction to go, he went, regardless of not knowing his exact destination. Sometimes we can want to have total knowledge of God’s plan, and we hesitate to go forward until we’re sure we know exactly what to do. However, God rarely gives us a full view of his plan before we start out. He wants us to trust in him, to act on what we do know, and to be confident that God will bring his plan to a good end. Not that we shouldn’t have all the foresight we can, but we can’t expect God to let us in on his “master plan.” When God calls us, our response should be to follow without questioning God’s ways.

2. The Holy Spirit Is Our Guide: The fact that we have to trust in God and allow him to reveal his plan as we go along means that we have to be very attentive to his work in our life. John the Baptist recognized Jesus because he was paying total attention to the signs God was giving him: the Holy Spirit revealed to him that Jesus was the Messiah. God will usually not speak to us through visions and special signs; however, if we have St. John the Baptist’s attitude of openness to the inspirations of the Holy Spirit and seeing God’s will in the events around us, we will be able to discern his plan for our life and fulfill it. The most important time to listen to God is in prayer, so setting aside time to be with God has to be part of our daily routine.

3. Dealing with the Unexpected: When St. John the Baptist realized that Jesus was the Messiah, it might have been a surprise. They were related through their mothers’ families, and they may have known each other in youth before John went out into the desert. However, John clearly states that he did not know who the Messiah was until the moment the Holy Spirit revealed Jesus’ true identity. John may well have shared the common opinion that Jesus was a man like any other, albeit outstanding in justice and piety. The important thing is that he doesn’t doubt the divine inspiration. Rather, he immediately acts on it, proclaiming Jesus to his followers. In our own lives, God may well ask us to do the unexpected, or we may see his will in places we least expect it. We need to have St. John the Baptist’s readiness to see God’s hand and act on it, even if it goes contrary to our expectations.

Conversation with Christ: Lord Jesus, knowing your will in my life can be hard at times. Even when I think I do know what you want from me, it can be difficult to follow through — especially when it is something that I did not expect or that requires that I go beyond my “comfort zone.” But, Lord, I do want to do your will. Grant me the same spirit of docility and dedication as St. John the Baptist!

Resolution: Today I will renew in prayer my personal commitment to always seek to know and follow God’s will in my life. I will try to heed the inspirations that the Holy Spirit gives to guide me on the right path.

One Bread, One Body

<< Tuesday, January 3, 2012 >>

Holy Name of Jesus
Saint of the Day

1 John 2:29—3:6
View Readings

Psalm 98:1, 3-6

John 1:29-34

SEEKING RECOGNITION

"I confess I did not recognize Him." —John 1:31

While in the womb, John the Baptizer was baptized in the Holy Spirit by Jesus, Who was in the womb of Mary (Lk 1:41, 15). John was a relative of Jesus. He was leading a great prophetic ministry and calling people to be baptized in repentance (Lk 3:3). John was the greatest person who had ever lived up to that time (Mt 11:11).

Nevertheless, John did not recognize Jesus, although Jesus was "the very reason" John was baptizing (Jn 1:31). This is shocking, for it shows us how easy it is to miss out on Jesus. This explains why only a few wise men and shepherds recognized Jesus at the first Christmas and only a handful of people recognized Him on Calvary. Even today, almost two-thousand years after His birth, Jesus is still unrecognized by much of the world. The world "never recognized the Son" (1 Jn 3:1).

However, John eventually did recognize Jesus (Jn 1:33ff). The apostles, even Thomas, finally recognized Jesus. Throughout the world, people are recognizing Jesus at this moment. Jesus wants each of us to recognize Him now during this Christmas season. Accept His grace to recognize Him. When you do, you will worship Him, live for Him, and tell the world about Him.

Prayer: Father, open my eyes to Jesus now.

Promise: "Everyone who has this hope based on Him keeps himself pure, as He is pure." —1 Jn 3:3

Praise: "The reason [Jesus] revealed Himself was to take away sins" (1 Jn 3:5). Praise the Holy Name of Jesus!

January 3, Most Holy Name of Jesus

The name of Jesus is a name of gladness, a name of hope and a name of love. A name of gladness, because if the remembrance of past transgressions afflicts us, this name comforts us, reminding us that the Son of God became man for this purpose, to make himself our Savior.

A name of hope, because he that prays to the Eternal Father in the name of Jesus may hope for every grace he asks for: If you ask the Father anything in My name, He will give it you.

A name of love. For the name of Jesus brings to our remembrance all the sufferings which Jesus has endured for us in his life and at his death. — Excerpted from St. Alphonsus de Liguori, The Incarnation Birth and Infancy of Jesus Christ

Day Ten activity (Holy Name Activities)
Day Ten recipe (Sugar Cookies)

A blessed Tenth Day of Christmas to all of you!

January 3, 2012

Christmas Weekday

Reading 1 1 Jn 2:29-3:6

Responsorial Psalm Ps 98:1, 3cd-4, 5-6

Gospel Jn 1:29-34

St. Genevieve

Daily Readings for: January 03, 2012
(Readings on USCCB website)

RECIPES

ACTIVITIES

PRAYERS

Christmas: January 3rd

Optional Memorial of the Most Holy Name of Jesus

Meditation: Psalm 98:1,3-6

The Holy Name of Jesus and the Holy Face

The Name of Jesus Makes a Contemplative Man

One Bread, One Body

SEEKING RECOGNITION

January 3, 2012

Christmas Weekday

Reading 1 1 Jn 2:29-3:6

Responsorial Psalm Ps 98:1, 3cd-4, 5-6

Gospel Jn 1:29-34

St. Genevieve

Daily Readings for: January 03, 2012(Readings on USCCB website)

RECIPES

ACTIVITIES

PRAYERS

Christmas: January 3rd

Optional Memorial of the Most Holy Name of Jesus

Meditation: Psalm 98:1,3-6

The Holy Name of Jesus and the Holy Face

The Name of Jesus Makes a Contemplative Man

One Bread, One Body

SEEKING RECOGNITION

Daily Readings for: January 03, 2012
(Readings on USCCB website)