Jesus Christ.
John the Baptist and all the prophets
remind us that to receive peace
we must be prepared for it.
The Second Sunday of Advent
Gathering Song:
Penitential Act: Confiteor
I confess to almighty God and to you,
my brothers and sisters,
that I have greatly sinned
in my thoughts and in my words,
in what I have done
and in what I have failed to do,
through my fault,
through my fault,
through my most grievous fault;
Therefore I ask blessed Mary ever-Virgin,
all the Angels and Saints;
and you, my brothers and sisters,
to pray for me to the Lord our God.
-AND/OR-
Lord have Mercy,
Christ have Mercy,
Lord have Mercy
Liturgy of the Word
1st Reading
On that day, a shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse,
and from his roots a bud shall blossom.
The spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him:
a spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
a spirit of counsel and of strength,
a spirit of knowledge and of fear of the LORD,
and his delight shall be the fear of the LORD.
Not by appearance shall he judge,
nor by hearsay shall he decide,
but he shall judge the poor with justice,
and decide aright for the land's afflicted.
He shall strike the ruthless with the rod of his mouth,
and with the breath of his lips he shall slay the wicked.
Justice shall be the band around his waist,
and faithfulness a belt upon his hips.
Then the wolf shall be a guest of the lamb,
and the leopard shall lie down with the kid;
the calf and the young lion shall browse together,
with a little child to guide them.
The cow and the bear shall be neighbors,
together their young shall rest;
the lion shall eat hay like the ox.
The baby shall play by the cobra's den,
and the child lay his hand on the adder's lair.
There shall be no harm or ruin on all my holy mountain;
for the earth shall be filled with knowledge of the LORD,
as water covers the sea.
On that day, the root of Jesse,
set up as a signal for the nations,
the Gentiles shall seek out,
for his dwelling shall be glorious.
Responsorial Psalm
R. Justice shall flourish in his time,
and fullness of peace for ever.
O God, with your judgment endow the king,
and with your justice, the king's son;
he shall govern your people with justice
and your afflicted ones with judgment.
R. Justice shall flourish in his time,
and fullness of peace for ever.
Justice shall flower in his days,
and profound peace, till the moon be no more.
May he rule from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
R. Justice shall flourish in his time,
and fullness of peace for ever.
For he shall rescue the poor when he cries out,
and the afflicted when he has no one to help him.
He shall have pity for the lowly and the poor;
the lives of the poor he shall save.
R. Justice shall flourish in his time,
and fullness of peace for ever.
May his name be blessed forever;
as long as the sun his name shall remain.
In him shall all the tribes of the earth be blessed;
all the nations shall proclaim his happiness.
R. Justice shall flourish in his time,and fullness of peace for ever.
2nd Reading
Whatever was written previously was written
for our instruction,
that by endurance and by the encouragement
of the Scriptures
we might have hope.
May the God of endurance and encouragement
grant you to think in harmony with one another,
in keeping with Christ Jesus,
that with one accord you may with one voice
glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Welcome one another, then, as Christ
welcomed you, for the glory of God.
For I say that Christ became a minister of the circumcised to show God's truthfulness,
to confirm the promises to the patriarchs,
but so that the Gentiles might glorify God
for his mercy.
As it is written:
Therefore, I will praise you among the Gentiles
and sing praises to your name..
~Thanks be to God
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Allelulia.
Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths:
all flesh shall see the salvation of God.
R. Alleluia, Alleluia, Alelluia, Alelluia.
Mt 3:1-12
and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!"
It was of him that the prophet Isaiah had spoken when he said:
A voice of one crying out in the desert,
Prepare the way of the Lord,
make straight his paths.
John wore clothing made of camel's hair
and had a leather belt around his waist.
His food was locusts and wild honey.
At that time Jerusalem, all Judea,
and the whole region around the Jordan
were going out to him
and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River
as they acknowledged their sins.
When he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees
coming to his baptism, he said to them, "You brood of vipers!
Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?
Produce good fruit as evidence of your repentance.
And do not presume to say to yourselves,
'We have Abraham as our father.'
For I tell you,
God can raise up children to Abraham from these stones.
Even now the ax lies at the root of the trees.
Therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit
will be cut down and thrown into the fire.
I am baptizing you with water, for repentance,
but the one who is coming after me is mightier than I.
I am not worthy to carry his sandals.
He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.
His winnowing fan is in his hand.
He will clear his threshing floor
and gather his wheat into his barn,
but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire."
~ Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ
Homily
Profession of Faith:
I believe in one God, the Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all things visible and invisible.
I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the Only Begotten Son of God,
born of the Father before all ages.
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God, begotten,
not made, consubstantial with the Father;
through Him all things were made.
For us men and for our salvation
He came down from heaven,
and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate
of the Virgin Mary,
and became man.
For our sake He was crucified
under Pontius Pilate,
He suffered death and was buried,
and rose again on the third day
in accordance with the Scriptures.
He ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge
the living and the dead
and His kingdom will have no end.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son
is adored and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.
I believe in one, holy, catholic
and apostolic Church.
I confess one Baptism
for the forgiveness of sins
and I look forward to the
resurrection of the dead
and the life of the world to come. Amen.
Universal Prayer:
Prayers of Petition
~ Lord, hear our prayer
Offertory Song:
Liturgy of the Eucharist
Eucharistic Acclamations:
R: Blessed be God forever
R: Blessed be God forever
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
R: May the Lord accept the sacrifice
at your hands for the
praise and glory of his name,
for our good
and the good of all His holy Church
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
R: And with your spirit
R: We lift them up to the Lord
R: It is right and just.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of hosts.
Heaven and earth are full,
full of your glory.
Hosanna, hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is he who comes
in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna, Hosanna in the highest.
Hosanna, Hosanna in the highest.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Save us, Savior of the world,
for by your Cross and Resurrection you have set us free
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name.
Thy Kingdom come.
Thy Will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those
who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil. Amen.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
For the kingdom,
the power and glory are yours
now and forever.~Amen
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Sign of Peace
R: And with your Spirit
(to one another) :
~ Peace be with you!
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Lamb of God,
you take away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us.
Lamb of God,
you take away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us.
Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world,
grant us peace.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
R: Lord I am not worthy that should
enter under my roof,
but only say the word
and my soul shall be healed.
Communion Song:
Spiritual Communion:
My Jesus, I believe that you are present
in the Most Holy Sacrament.
I love you above all things,
and I desire to receive you into my soul.
Since I cannot at this moment receive You sacramentally,
Come at least spiritually into my heart.
I embrace You as if You were already there
And unite myself wholly to You.
Never permit me to be separated from You.
Amen.
Concluding Rite
Lord Jesus,
You said to your disciples,
"I am the way the truth and the life."
Give young people the gift of discernment,
to find their way and embrace their true vocation,
the life for which you have created them.
In all that lies before them,
help them discern a life
that is pleasing to you,
whether to Christian marriage,
to priesthood,
or the consecrated religious life.
Send your Holy Spirit to inspire them.
Grant them the grace to embrace
a life of joyful service.
Fulfill their desires to make a
generous gift of themselves to others,
after your example.
Give them the loving support of family and friends
as they prayerfully discern their vocation in this life.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
~ Amen