4th Sunday of Advent

Liturgy Alive

The liturgical calendar of the year

Description

Sunday December 20

Fourth Sunday of Advent

1. Servant of the Lord

2. Reliable Words from God and Mary

Greeting (see second reading)

Glory to God who is able to give you

the strength to live according to the Good News
about Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
This Good News is now proclaimed to all.
May you accept this Good News
and may the Lord Jesus be always with you. R/ And also with you.

Introduction

1. Servant of the Lord

To what extent are we available to God and do we see what he wants to do in us and through us? Today we are shown the marvelous example of Mary. Even if she did not see clearly all it implied, she accepted her mission to become the mother of the Saviour. Jesus wants to be born in our world through us too, with our cooperation. We too have to say our Yes to God and to his plans with us and with the world. Let us say our Yes with Jesus and Mary.

2. Reliable Words from God and Mary

How reliable are our words? How often do we keep our promises? Many times in the past God had promised to bring joy and happiness and freedom to his people. He kept his word and promise in a way surpassing by far what people expected: he sent his own Son as one of us: God’s Son, yes, but also the son of a human mother. A few days from now, on Christmas, we shall celebrate how God gave us Jesus. Today we hear an angel announcing to Mary that God would keep his word through her, and Mary gave her word that she would cooperate with God’s plan. Like her and with Jesus may we also say our Yes to God here in this Eucharist.

Penitential Act

Our indifference and our refusals
have been obstacles to God’s plans.
Let us ask the Lord to forgive us.
(pause)
Lord Jesus, with you and with Mary
we want to be open to the word of God:
Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.

Jesus Christ, with you and with Mary
we are willing to face the risks
of committing ourselves to God and to people:
Christ, have mercy. R/ Christ, have mercy.

Lord Jesus, from you and from Mary
we want to learn to serve:
Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.

In your mercy, Lord,
speak to us your word of forgiveness
and make us respond to your words of life.
Lead us to everlasting life. R/ Amen.

Opening Prayer

Let us pray to our Father
that we may be receptive to the coming of his Son
(pause)
God, who are the Most High Lord of all,
you have a surprising preference
for people who are small and humble
and who expect everything from you.
You chose Mary, the unassuming virgin from Nazareth,
to become the mother of your Son Jesus.
Through your Holy Spirit
make us aware of the poverty of our hearts,
that we may be open to you and welcome you,
be ready, like Mary, to serve you and your plans,
and expect everything from you.
Come to us and give yourself to us
through Jesus Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.

First Reading: A House That Will Stand Forever

David proposes to build for God the house of a temple. But God chooses the house of the dynasty of David, from which a Savior would be born for his people.

Reading 1: 2 SM 7:1-5, 8B-12, 14A, 16

When King David was settled in his palace,
and the LORD had given him rest from his enemies on every side,
he said to Nathan the prophet,
"Here I am living in a house of cedar,
while the ark of God dwells in a tent!"
Nathan answered the king,
"Go, do whatever you have in mind,
for the LORD is with you."
But that night the LORD spoke to Nathan and said:
"Go, tell my servant David, 'Thus says the LORD:
Should you build me a house to dwell in?'
"It was I who took you from the pasture
and from the care of the flock
to be commander of my people Israel.
I have been with you wherever you went,
and I have destroyed all your enemies before you.
And I will make you famous like the great ones of the earth.
I will fix a place for my people Israel;
I will plant them so that they may dwell in their place
without further disturbance.
Neither shall the wicked continue to afflict them as they did of old,
since the time I first appointed judges over my people Israel.
I will give you rest from all your enemies.
The LORD also reveals to you
that he will establish a house for you.
And when your time comes and you rest with your ancestors,
I will raise up your heir after you, sprung from your loins,
and I will make his kingdom firm.
I will be a father to him,
and he shall be a son to me.
Your house and your kingdom shall endure forever before me;
your throne shall stand firm forever."

Responsorial Psalm 89:2-3, 4-5, 27, 29

R. (2a) For ever I will sing the goodness of the Lord.
The promises of the LORD I will sing forever;
through all generations my mouth shall proclaim your faithfulness.
For you have said, "My kindness is established forever";
in heaven you have confirmed your faithfulness.
R. For ever I will sing the goodness of the Lord.
"I have made a covenant with my chosen one,
I have sworn to David my servant:
Forever will I confirm your posterity
and establish your throne for all generations."
R. For ever I will sing the goodness of the Lord.
"He shall say of me, 'You are my father,
my God, the Rock, my savior.'
Forever I will maintain my kindness toward him,
and my covenant with him stands firm."
R. For ever I will sing the goodness of the Lord.

Second Reading: God Shows Himself in Jesus Christ

With Paul, let us praise God, who remained hidden for a long time, but now, in his wisdom, has shown himself in Jesus Christ. This is the Good News to be preached to all.

Reading 2: ROM 16:25-27

Brothers and sisters:
To him who can strengthen you,
according to my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ,
according to the revelation of the mystery kept secret for long ages
but now manifested through the prophetic writings and,
according to the command of the eternal God,
made known to all nations to bring about the obedience of faith,
to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ
be glory forever and ever. Amen.

Alleluia LK 1:38

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.
May it be done to me according to your word.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel: Your Will for Me Be Done

God’s plans are fulfilled where people, in all humility like Mary, receive God on his own terms.

Gospel: LK 1:26-38

The angel Gabriel was sent from God
to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,
to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph,
of the house of David,
and the virgin's name was Mary.
And coming to her, he said,
"Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you."
But she was greatly troubled at what was said
and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.
Then the angel said to her,
"Do not be afraid, Mary,
for you have found favor with God.
"Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son,
and you shall name him Jesus.
He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High,
and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father,
and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever,
and of his kingdom there will be no end."
But Mary said to the angel,
"How can this be,
since I have no relations with a man?"
And the angel said to her in reply,
"The Holy Spirit will come upon you,
and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.
Therefore the child to be born
will be called holy, the Son of God.
And behold, Elizabeth, your relative,
has also conceived a son in her old age,
and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren;
for nothing will be impossible for God."
Mary said, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.
May it be done to me according to your word."
Then the angel departed from her.

Commentary

Mary, the joyful expectation of the new-born

The birth of a new child in a family is always a moment full of joy and hope. But it is also, admittedly, a difficult moment. The mother goes through a trance that is not easy. The life that is born comes into the world in the midst of pain. The newborn is fragile, weak and demands the total attention of the parents. The joy of the birth will depend also on how far the parents desire for the child. That is why the expectation of birth is a time of hope but also of concern. Will everything go well?

But Mary overcomes her anxieties through faith. “I am the handmaid of the Lord, let it be done to me as you have said” (v. 38). She had no doubts in this regard. No one had understood God's plan. David, Nathan, Solomon, the kings of Israel had not understood it. All of them had put their dreams in opposition to God and expected God to help them to achieve their dreams. But, Mary does not behave like them; she does not put her personal plans before God. She only wants to know what is her role that God intends to entrust to her and she joyously welcomes his initiative.

Like every mother she would ask herself questions about the future of the child she was carrying in her womb. And she would not have all the answers. She could only trust the word of God she had received: what she carried in her womb was the work of the Spirit of God.

What does Mary teach us today? To prepare ourselves to celebrate Christmas is to have an open heart to the newness that God can bring into our lives at any time. Because God continues to be born in our world. God continues to be present among us. Sometimes in the most unusual ways, but always, for sure, among his favourites, the poorest, the simplest, those who have nothing. Blessed are we if we are able to discover that mysterious presence of God near us! Then we will be ready to celebrate Christmas.

For your reflection

Well, we do listen to lots of commentaries on the Gospel passage. Why not keep this question with you for today: am I able to discover that imminent presence of God in my family and in the society? Do I celebrate with joy the signs of God’s presence and life that I come across?

Intercessions

Let us open our hearts to the Lord Jesus that he may live in us and stay with us. Let us say: