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First Reading: 1 Jn 1:5 —2:2
Beloved:
This is the message that we have heard from Jesus Christ and
proclaim to you: God is light, and in him there is no darkness
at all. If we say, “We have fellowship with him,” while we
continue to walk in darkness, we lie and do not act in truth.
But if we walk in the light as he is in the light, then we have
fellowship with one another, and the Blood of his Son Jesus
cleanses us from all sin. If we say, “We are without sin,” we
deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we acknowledge
our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive our sins and
cleanse us from every wrongdoing. If we say, “We have not
sinned,” we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
My children, I am writing this to you so that you may not
commit sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an Advocate
with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous one. He is expiation
for our sins, and not for our sins only but for those of the
whole world.
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 84:2-3, 5-6, 9-10
R. Our soul has been rescued like a bird
from the fowler’s snare.
Had not the LORD been with us—
When men rose up against us,
then would they have swallowed us alive,
When their fury was inflamed against us.
from the fowler’s snare.
Then would the waters have overwhelmed us;
The torrent would have swept over us;
over us then would have swept the raging waters.
R. Our soul has been rescued like a bird
from the fowler’s snare.
Broken was the snare,
and we were freed.
Our help is in the name of the LORD,
who made heaven and earth.
R. Our soul has been rescued like a bird
from the fowler’s snare.
Gospel Reading: Matthew 2:13-18
After the wise men had left, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph and said, "Get up, take the child and his mother and flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you for Herod will soon be looking for the child in order to kill him."
Joseph got up, took the child and his mother, and left that night for Egypt, where he stayed until the death of Herod. In this way, what the Lord had said through the prophet was fulfilled: I called my son out of Egypt.
When Herod found out that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was furious. He gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its neighborhood who were two years old or under. This was done in line with what he had learned from the wise men about the time when the star appeared.
In this way, what the prophet Jeremiah had said was fulfilled: A cry is heard in Ramah, wailing and loud lamentation: Rachel weeps for her children. She refuses to be comforted, for they are no more.
HOLY INNOCENTS, Feast
December 28
Introduction
Today’s celebration shocks us into the realization that the birth of Christ was not all peace and joy. The coming of Jesus was the beginning of a struggle-to-death between the powers of evil and the kingdom of light, a struggle that would have its climax in the passion and death of Jesus. Herod stands here for the forces of evil. Even innocent children are often the victims of this enmity.
The story of the Innocents may very well be a theological illustration of Matthew on this climactic clash between good and evil that began with the birth of Jesus. Often the innocents have to suffer on account of so much evil in the world caused by people.
Opening Prayer
Lord our God,
today’s innocent martyrs
bore witness to you
not by proclaiming your name in words
but by laying down their lives for you,
even though they were not aware of it.
We pray to you on their feast
that we may bear witness to you
both by the words we speak
and the way we live what we believe in.
May we do so in the full awareness
of what we are doing.
We ask you this through Christ our Lord.
Liturgy of the Word
General Intercessions
– That especially children may be spared from suffering, malnutrition and maltreatment, we pray to God our merciful Father:
– That children may not become the victims of unloving parents who do not want them, abandon them or desert them as they separate from each other, we pray:
– That children may have caring parents who help them to grow toward a generous and rich adulthood, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
We bring these our gifts before you, Lord God;
accept them from your faithful people,
that we may be strengthened in our faith.
May they also bring your salvation
to those whom we sometimes call anonymous Christians,
those who do not know you,
yet who seek you with a sincere heart
by trying to do what is right and good.
We ask you this through Christ our Lord.
Prayer after Communion
Lord, God of eternal light,
we all share in the struggle-to-death
between light and darkness.
Let the light of your love and peace
shine among people all over the world,
that our solidarity in the evil of sin
may be changed into a new solidarity
of justice, forgiveness and community
by the coming among us of your Son,
Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Blessing
We ask the Lord today that he may bless especially our children, that they may grow up as God’s children, as good Christians and good citizens. May almighty God bless them and you all, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
