DAILY READINGS & REFLECTION

JANUARY 4, 2024

THURSDAY - MEMORIAL OF SAINT ELIZABETH ANN SETON, RELIGIOUS

FIRST READING

1 JOHN 3:7-10

7 Little children, let no one deceive you. He who does right is righteous, as he is righteous. 8 He who commits sin is of the devil; for the devil has sinned from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. 9 No one born of God commits sin; for God's nature abides in him, and he cannot sin because he is born of God. 10 By this it may be seen who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not do right is not of God, nor he who does not love his brother.

The Word of the Lord
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RESPONSORIAL PSALM

PSALMS 97(98):1, 7-9

Response: All the ends of the earh have seen the saving power of God.

O sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done marvelous things!
His right hand and his holy arm
have gotten him victory.

R. All the ends of the earth have seen the saving power of God.

Let the sea roar, and all that fills it;
the world and those who dwell in it!
Let the floods clap their hands;
let the hills sing for joy together.

R. All the ends of the earth have seen the saving power of God.

Before the LORD, for he comes
to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with righteousness,
and the peoples with equity.

R. All the ends of the earth have seen the saving power of God.
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GOSPEL

We have found the Messiah!

JOHN 1:35-42

35 The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples; 36 and he looked at Jesus as he walked, and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God!" 37 The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. 38 Jesus turned, and saw them following, and said to them, "What do you seek?" And they said to him, "Rabbi" (which means Teacher), "where are you staying?" 39 He said to them, "Come and see." They came and saw where he was staying; and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth hour. 40 One of the two who heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. 41 He first found his brother Simon, and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which means Christ). 42 He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him, and said, "So you are Simon the son of John? You shall be called Cephas" (which means Peter).

The Gospel of the Lord
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REFLECTION

DAILY QUOTE FROM THE EARLY CHURCH FATHERS

The first disciples longing for the Messiah, by John Chrysostom (349-407 AD)

"Andrew, after having stayed with Jesus and after having learned what he did, did not keep the treasure to himself but hurries and races to his brother in order to let him know the good things Jesus has shared with him. But why hasnt John mentioned what they talked about? How do we know this is why they 'stayed with him'?... Observe what Andrew says to his brother, 'We have found the Messiah, which is, being interpreted, the Christ.' You see how, in a short time, he demonstrates not only the persuasiveness of the wise teacher but also his own longing that he had from the beginning. For this word, 'we have found,' is the expression of a soul that longs for his presence, looking for his coming from above, and is so ecstatic when what he is looking for happens that he hurries to tell others the good news. This is what brotherly affection, natural friendship, is all about when someone is eager to extend a hand to another when it comes to spiritual matters. Also see how he adds the article, for he does not say 'Messiah' but 'the Messiah.' They were expecting the Christ who would have nothing in common with the others."

(excerpt from HOMILIES ON THE GOSPEL OF JOHN 19.1)
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Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (RSVCE)
The Revised Standard Version of the Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1965, 1966 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.