1ST READING
One
of the names for the Messiah is “Lord of Justice” according to the
Prophet Jeremiah. We need to take this name seriously as there is too
much injustice in the world today. Where abortion can be had virtually
on demand, there can never be peace. True justice is impossible when the
most defenseless human persons are being destroyed, more often than
not, out of search for pleasure and convenience for the adults
concerned. As we reflect upon the birth of Jesus, it could be helpful to
wonder what might have been if Mary, a single mother, had the option of
abortion open to her.
Jeremiah 23:5-8
5 Behold,
the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will raise up a righteous
shoot to David; as king he shall reign and govern wisely, he shall do
what is just and right in the land. 6 In his days Judah shall be saved, Israel shall dwell in security. This is the name they give him: “The Lord our justice.” 7 Therefore,
the days will come, says the Lord, when they shall no longer say, “As
the Lord lives, who brought the Israelites out of the land of Egypt;”
8 but
rather, “As the Lord lives, who brought the descendants of the house of
Israel up from the land of the north” — and from all the lands to which
I banished them; they shall again live on their own land.
P S A L M
Psalm 72:1-2, 12-13, 18-19
R: Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
1 O God, with your judgment endow the king, and with your justice, the king’s son; 2 He shall govern your people with justice and your afflicted ones with judgment. (R) 12 For he shall rescue the poor man when he cries out, and the afflicted when he has no one to help him. 13 He shall have
pity for the lowly and the poor; the lives of the poor he shall save. (R) 18 Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who alone does wondrous deeds. 19 And blessed forever be his glorious name; may the whole earth be filled with his glory. (R)
GOSPEL
Mary
chose to carry the child in her womb to birth. I doubt she even
contemplated trying to get rid of the child. The world today needs to
accept the truth of the dignity of the unborn child such that the
scourge of abortion be removed from the legal statutes of all countries.
Abortion, the deliberate destruction of the most defenseless human
life, is a holocaust that has far surpassed any other human crime. We
need to be rid of it if we ever want to have a truly just society.
GOSPEL ACCLAMATION
O Leader of the House of Israel, giver of the Law to Moses on Sinai: come to rescue us with your mighty power!
Matthew 1:18-25
18 This
is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. When his mother Mary was
betrothed to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found with
child through the Holy Spirit. 19 Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man, yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly. 20 Such
was his intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him
in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to
take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the Holy Spirit
that this child has been conceived in her. 21 She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” 22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 “Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel”, which means “God is with us.” 24 When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel
of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home. 25 He had no relations with her until she bore a son, and he named him Jesus.
think: We need to be rid of abortion if we ever want to have a truly just society.
T O D A Y’S BLESSING LIST
Thank You Lord for: __________________
____________________________________
God’s special verse/thought for me today_
_____________________________________
READ THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR Amos 4-6
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