Memorial of Saint Gregory the Great, Pope and Doctor of the Church

Reading 1 1 Thes 5:1-6, 9-11

Concerning times and seasons, brothers and sisters,
you have no need for anything to be written to you.
For you yourselves know very well
that the day of the Lord will come like a thief at night.
When people are saying, "Peace and security,"
then sudden disaster comes upon them,
like labor pains upon a pregnant woman,
and they will not escape.

But you, brothers and sisters, are not in darkness,
for that day to overtake you like a thief.
For all of you are children of the light
and children of the day.
We are not of the night or of darkness.
Therefore, let us not sleep as the rest do,
but let us stay alert and sober.
For God did not destine us for wrath,
but to gain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,
who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep
we may live together with him.
Therefore, encourage one another and build one another up,
as indeed you do.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 27:1, 4, 13-14

R. (13) I believe that I shall see the good things of the Lord in the land of the living.
The LORD is my light and my salvation;
whom should I fear?
The LORD is my life's refuge;
of whom should I be afraid?
R. I believe that I shall see the good things of the Lord in the land of the living.
One thing I ask of the LORD;
this I seek:
To dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life,
That I may gaze on the loveliness of the LORD
and contemplate his temple.
R. I believe that I shall see the good things of the Lord in the land of the living.
I believe that I shall see the bounty of the LORD
in the land of the living.
Wait for the LORD with courage;
be stouthearted, and wait for the LORD.
R. I believe that I shall see the good things of the Lord in the land of the living.

Alleluia Lk 7:16

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
A great prophet has arisen in our midst
and God has visited his people.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Lk 4:31-37

Jesus went down to Capernaum, a town of Galilee.
He taught them on the sabbath,
and they were astonished at his teaching
because he spoke with authority.
In the synagogue there was a man with the spirit of an unclean demon,
and he cried out in a loud voice,
"What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?
Have you come to destroy us?
I know who you are–the Holy One of God!"
Jesus rebuked him and said, "Be quiet! Come out of him!"
Then the demon threw the man down in front of them
and came out of him without doing him any harm.
They were all amazed and said to one another,
"What is there about his word?
For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits,
and they come out."
And news of him spread everywhere in the surrounding region.

For the readings of the Memorial of Saint Gregory the Great, please go here.

From: 1 Thessalonians 5:1-6, 9-11

The Second Coming of the Lord (Continuation)

[1] But as to the times and the seasons, brethren, you have no need to have
anything written to you. For you yourselves know well that the day of the Lord
will come like a thief in the night. [3] When people say, “There is peace and se-
curity,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as travail comes upon a
woman with child, and there will be no escape. [4] But you are not in darkness,
brethren, for that day to surprise you like a thief. [5] For you are all sons of light
and sons of the day; we are not of the night or of darkness. [6] So then let us
not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober. [9] For God has
not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,
[10] who died for us so that whether we wake or sleep we might live with him.
[11] Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are
doing.

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Commentary:

1-3. “The day of the Lord” is an expression used a number of times in Sacred
Scripture to refer to that point at which God will intervene decisively and irrever-
sibly. The prophets speak of the “day of Yahweh” sometimes fearfully (cf. Amos
5:18-20), sometimes hopefully (cf. Is 6:13). In his eschatological sermon (cf. Mt
24; Mk 13; Lk 21), Jesus foretold the destruction of Jerusalem in a style very
reminiscent of that used by the prophets (cf. Amos 8:9ff) when speaking of the
“day of Yahweh”. The destruction of the city brings to an end the Jewish era in
the history of salvation and prefigures the second coming of Christ as Judge of
all. In St Paul’s letters, as in other New Testament writings, the “day of the Lord”
is the day of the general judgment when Christ will appear in the fullness of glory
as Judge (cf. 1 Cor 1:8; 2 Cor 1:14). The Apostle brings in some examples used
by our Lord in his preaching about the fall of Jerusalem and the end of the world
(the “thief in the night”: cf. Mt 24:43; the pains of childbirth: cf. Mt 24:19) to warn
people that that day will come unexpectedly, and to exhort them to be always
ready.

The Christian, therefore, should always be on the watch, for he never knows for
sure when the last day of his life will be. The second coming of the Lord will take
people by surprise; it will catch them doing good or doing evil. So, it would be
rash to postpone repentance to some time in the future.

4-6. A thief works by night because he thinks that darkness will find the house-
holder unprepared. Our Lord also used this metaphor when he said that if the fa-
ther of the family had known when the thief would come, he would have kept a
look-out (cf. Mt 24:43)—in other words, we need to be always alert, in the state
of grace, surrounded by light. So, “if we walk in the light, as he is in the light,
we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses
us from all sin” (1 Jn 1:7).

On the same subject the Church teaches that our souls are “illumined by the
light of faith” (”St Pius V Catechism”, II, 2, 4).

We should therefore live a transparent life, with the divine light shining clearly
through it; if we do, the “day of the Lord” (which can also be applied to the day
each person dies) will not find us unprepared, even if it comes suddenly. “A true
Christian is always ready to appear before God. Because, if he is fighting to live
as a man of Christ, he is ready at every moment to fulfill his duty” (St. J. Escri-
va, “Furrow”, 875).

9-10. “Wrath” refers to the condemnation earned by those who die in sin; and
“salvation”, in the New Testament, means being protected from danger and able
to live free from anxiety. Being saved from wrath means obtaining eternal salva-
tion.

Salvation comes to us “through our Lord Jesus Christ”. The name Jesus (”God
saves”) conveys this mission which Christ attributed to himself (cf. Mt 1:21):
“The Son of man came to seek and to save the lost” (Lk 19:10). Christ is the
Savior: “there is no salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under
heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). He will give
us forgiveness of sins (cf. Acts 5:31); that was why he “died for us”. “Through
suffering” (Heb 2:10) he fulfilled the mission entrusted to him. By dying in obedi-
ence to the Father “he became the source of eternal salvation” (Heb 5:9). “There
fore he had to be made like his brethren in every respect, so that he might be-
come a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make expiation
for the sins of the people. For because he himself has suffered and been temp-
ted, he is able to help those who are tempted (Heb 2:17-18). So it is that Jesus
intercedes for all believers until the end of time (cf. Heb 7:25).

When he receives the sacrament of Baptism, the Christian becomes identified
with Christ, the eternal high priest, in a special way: the “character” or mark
conferred by the sacrament indicates that he is destined to live with Christ. As
he makes his pilgrim way through this life he is able to enjoy, through grace, a
foretaste of that divine life which he will enjoy permanently and much more fully
in heaven.

Verse 10 contains another of St Paul’s plays on words. The word “sleep” here
(unlike vv. 6-7) means “die”, and “being awake” means “being alive”. For a
Christian, death is a step which enables him to “live with Christ” forever, in eter-
nal beatitude.

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Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

From: Luke 4:31-37

Jesus Preaches in Capernaum

[31] And He (Jesus) went down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee. And He was
teaching them on the Sabbath; [32] and they were astonished at His teaching,
for His word was with authority.

The Cure of the Demoniac

[33] And in the synagogue there was a man who had the spirit of an unclean de-
mon; and he cried out with a loud voice, [34] “Ah! What have You to do with us,
Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are, the Holy
One of God.” [35] But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent, and come out of
him!” And when the demon had thrown him down in the midst, he came out of
him, having done him no harm. [36] And they were all amazed and said to one
another, “What is this word? For with authority and power He commands the un-
clean spirits, and they come out.” [37] And reports of Him went out into every
place in the surrounding region.

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Commentary:

33-37. Jesus now demonstrates by His actions that authority which was evident
in His words.

34. The demon tells the truth here when he calls Jesus “the Holy One of God”,
but Jesus does not accept this testimony from the “father of lies” (John 8:44).
This shows that the devil usually says something partially true in order to dis-
guise untruth; by sowing confusion in this way, he can more readily deceive
people. By silencing and expelling the demon, Jesus teaches us to be prudent
and not let ourselves by deceived by half-truths.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

Scripture readings from the Jerusalem Bible by Darton, Longman & Todd

Readings at Mass

Liturgical Colour: White.

These are the readings for the feria

First reading
1 Thessalonians 5:1-6,9-11 ©

Keep strengthening one another

You will not be expecting us to write anything to you, brothers, about ‘times and seasons’, since you know very well that the Day of the Lord is going to come like a thief in the night. It is when people are saying, ‘How quiet and peaceful it is’ that the worst suddenly happens, as suddenly as labour pains come on a pregnant woman; and there will be no way for anybody to evade it.

But it is not as if you live in the dark, my brothers, for that Day to overtake you like a thief. No, you are all sons of light and sons of the day: we do not belong to the night or to darkness, so we should not go on sleeping, as everyone else does, but stay wide awake and sober. God never meant us to experience the Retribution, but to win salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us so that, alive or dead, we should still live united to him. So give encouragement to each other, and keep strengthening one another, as you do already.

Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 26(27):1,4,13-14 ©

I am sure I shall see the Lord’s goodness in the land of the living.

The Lord is my light and my help;

whom shall I fear?

The Lord is the stronghold of my life;

before whom shall I shrink?

I am sure I shall see the Lord’s goodness in the land of the living.

There is one thing I ask of the Lord,

for this I long,

to live in the house of the Lord,

all the days of my life,

to savour the sweetness of the Lord,

to behold his temple.

I am sure I shall see the Lord’s goodness in the land of the living.

I am sure I shall see the Lord’s goodness

in the land of the living.

Hope in him, hold firm and take heart.

Hope in the Lord!

I am sure I shall see the Lord’s goodness in the land of the living.

Gospel Acclamation	Heb4:12

Alleluia, alleluia!

The word of God is something alive and active:

it can judge secret emotions and thoughts.

Alleluia!

Or:	Lk7:16

Alleluia, alleluia!

A great prophet has appeared among us;

God has visited his people.

Alleluia!

Gospel	Luke 4:31-37 ©

'I know who you are: the Holy One of God'

Jesus went down to Capernaum, a town in Galilee, and taught them on the sabbath. And his teaching made a deep impression on them because he spoke with authority.

In the synagogue there was a man who was possessed by the spirit of an unclean devil, and it shouted at the top of its voice, ‘Ha! What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are: the Holy One of God.’ But Jesus said sharply, ‘Be quiet! Come out of him!’ And the devil, throwing the man down in front of everyone, went out of him without hurting him at all. Astonishment seized them and they were all saying to one another, ‘What teaching! He gives orders to unclean spirits with authority and power and they come out.’ And reports of him went all through the surrounding countryside.

These are the readings for the memorial

First reading
2 Corinthians 4:1-2,5-7 ©

God has shone in our minds to radiate the light of the knowledge of his glory

Since we have by an act of mercy been entrusted with this work of administration, there is no weakening on our part. On the contrary, we will have none of the reticence of those who are ashamed, no deceitfulness or watering down the word of God; but the way we commend ourselves to every human being with a conscience is by stating the truth openly in the sight of God. For it is not ourselves that we are preaching, but Christ Jesus as the Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. It is the same God that said, ‘Let there be light shining out of darkness’, who has shone in our minds to radiate the light of the knowledge of God’s glory, the glory on the face of Christ.

We are only the earthenware jars that hold this treasure, to make it clear that such an overwhelming power comes from God and not from us.

Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 95(96):1-3,7-8,10 ©