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First Reading: 1 Jn 5:5–13
Beloved:
Who indeed is the victor over the world
but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
This is the one who came through water and Blood, Jesus Christ,
not by water alone, but by water and Blood.
The Spirit is the one who testifies,
and the Spirit is truth.
So there are three that testify,
the Spirit, the water, and the Blood,
and the three are of one accord.
If we accept human testimony,
the testimony of God is surely greater.
Now the testimony of God is this,
that he has testified on behalf of his Son.
Whoever believes in the Son of God
has this testimony within himself.
Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar
by not believing the testimony God has given about his Son.
And this is the testimony:
God gave us eternal life,
and this life is in his Son.
Whoever possesses the Son has life;
whoever does not possess the Son of God does not have life.
I write these things to you so that you may know
that you have eternal life,
you who believe in the name of the Son of God.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 147:12-13, 14-15, 19-20
R./ Praise the Lord, Jerusalem. OR: Alleluia
Glorify the Lord, O Jerusalem;
praise your God, O Zion.
For he has strengthened the bars of your gates;
he has blessed your children within you.
R./ Praise the Lord, Jerusalem. OR: Alleluia
He has granted peace in your borders;
with the best of wheat he fills you.
He sends forth his command to the earth;
swiftly runs his word!
R./ Praise the Lord, Jerusalem. OR: Alleluia
He has proclaimed his word to Jacob,
his statutes and his ordinances to Israel.
He has not done thus for any other nation;
his ordinances he has not made known to them. Alleluia.
R./ Praise the Lord, Jerusalem. OR: Alleluia
Gospel Reading: Mk 1:7–11
This is what John the Baptist proclaimed:
"One mightier than I is coming after me.
I am not worthy to stoop and loosen the thongs of his sandals.
I have baptized you with water;
he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."
It happened in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee
and was baptized in the Jordan by John.
On coming up out of the water he saw the heavens being torn open
and the Spirit, like a dove, descending upon him.
And a voice came from the heavens,
"You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased."
Introduction by the Celebrant
Today, the Gospel gives us Mark's account of the baptism of Jesus. We look at it in the spirit of the Christmas season. On Christmas, he manifested himself as a child, God as human in his weakness, though he was the Son of God. At the Epiphany, he manifested himself to the Gentiles as the Savior of all of humankind. Today, he manifests himself as the Son intensely loved by the Father, with the Spirit resting on him and guiding him. This scene is the inaugural vision of his public life. Now, he can begin his mission. For us, too, it is a reminder that in Jesus, we become God's beloved sons and daughters, and in our baptism began our mission as Christians.
Opening Prayer
God, our Father,
with your whole people reborn in baptism
we give you thanks and praise
that in Jesus each of us has become
your beloved son or daughter.
Fill us with the fire of the Holy Spirit
who guided Jesus in life and death.
Let this Spirit set us free for our mission
to serve you and one another
with unselfish, grateful love.
We ask this in the name of Jesus, the Lord.
General Intercessions
– For the Church and its leaders, that all of us may not seek compromises with wealth and power but learn to commit ourselves in love and to help the poor, we pray:
– For Christians and for all people, that the Holy Spirit may guide us to respect what is little and defenseless, that we may not crush them but give them justice, we pray:
– For us and for all our Christian communities, that the Eucharist may strengthen in us the gifts of the Holy Spirit and make us ever more faithful to our vocation as God's beloved children, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
Our God and Father,
these gifts of bread and wine
will become your beloved Son, Jesus,
on whom your favor rests.
Strengthen us with his body and blood
and let his Holy Spirit renew us
as people who live without compromise
the message of justice and love
and the very life of your Son.
In this way, may we truly be
your beloved sons and daughters
on whom your favor rests,
now and for ever. R/ Amen.
Prayer after Communion
Our God and Father,
you have opened heaven to us
to strengthen us with the bread of life
and to fill us with the Holy Spirit.
Make us new and call us away
from our certainties and attachments.
Send us out to go forward without fear
on the road of justice and peace,
that we may be your beloved children
together with your faithful Son,
Jesus Christ, our Lord. R/ Amen.
Blessing
At his baptism, Jesus saw his vocation to serve God and people. At our baptism, we were given our vocation. It is in a small way, the vocation of Jesus. Let each of us become a faithful servant and a son or daughter of the Father, with the blessing of Almighty God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. R/ Thanks be to God.
