Sundays after Epiphany

Second Sunday after the Epiphany

Semi-double - Green vestments.

It is by shedding His blood on Calvary that Jesus, became King of our hearts, has reconciled them with His Father. And so the liturgy today speaks to us of peace (collect).

In the Gospel it gives us a figure of the transubstantiation, which St. Thomas calls the greatest of all miracles, and by reason of which the Eucharistic wine becomes the blood of the testament. And as it is the Eucharist which enables Jesus to consummate, as Bossuet has it, His mystical marriage with our souls, the Fathers have seen in the wedding feast of Cana a symbol of the union of the Word with the Church.

Mary, full of the charity of which the Epistle speaks, asks of Jesus His first miracle on behalf of the bridegroom and bride who are in trouble because "they have no wine" for their guests (Gospel). Her power as Mother of God is so great that, at her request, Jesus anticipates the hour appointed for the "manifestation of His divinity" to His disciples so that He also places His power at the service of His love.

Six water-pots, which were used for the cleansing of bands during meals, are filled to the brim; and, after the miracle, the chief steward who was in charge of the arrangements for the feast, with all the knowledge that was his, declared the new wine to be exceptionally good. Confronted by this proof of the divinity of Jesus," His disciples believed in Him" (Gospel). By the Mass which washes away our sins (Secret) and the communion which enables the almighty power of Jesus to transform our souls (Postcommunion), let us realise within us the mystery of the water that the priest mixes with the wine by becoming partakers of the divinity of Him Who has put on our humanity.

INTROIT. Let all the earth adore Thee, and sing to Thee, O God: let it sing a psalm to Thy Name, 0 Most High. Shout with joy to God, all the earth, sing ye a psalm to His Name; give glory to His praise. Glory be to the Father.

COLLECT. Almighty and eternal God, Who rulest all things both in heaven and on earth, mercifully hear the prayers of Thy people, and grant us Thy peace in our days. Through our Lord.

EPISTLE. Romans xii. 6-16. Brethren: We have different gifts, according to the grace that is given us, either prophecy, to be used according to the rule of faith: or ministry, in ministering; or he that teacheth, in doctrine, he that exhorteth in exhorting, he that giveth with simplicity, he that ruleth with carefulness, he that showeth mercy with cheerfulness. Let love be without dissimulation. Hating that which is evil, cleaving to that which is good. Loving one another with the charity of brotherhood, with honor preventing one another. In carefulness not slothful. In spirit fervent, serving the Lord: rejoicing in hope: patient in tribulation: instant in prayer: communicating to the necessities of the Saints: pursuing hospitality. Bless them that persecute you: bless and curse not. Rejoice with them that rejoice, weep with them that weep. Being of one mind one towards another. Not minding high things, but consenting to the humble.

GRADUAL. The Lord sent His word, and healed them: and delivered them out of their distress. Let the mercies of the Lord givo glory to Him: and His wonderful works to the children of men. Alleluia, alleluia. Praise ye the Lord, all His Angels, praise ye Him all His hosts. Alleluia.

GOSPEL. John ii. 1-11. At that time: There was a marriage in Cans of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there. And Jesus also was invited, and His disciples, to the marriage. And the wine failing, the mother of Jesus saith to Him: They have no wine. And Jesus saith to her: Woman, what is that to Me and to thee? My hour is not yet come. His mother saith to the waiters: Whatsoever He shall say to you, do ye. Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three measures apiece. Jesus saith to them: Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim. And Jesus saith to them: Draw out now, and carry to the chief steward of the feast: and they carried it. And when the chief steward had tasted the water made wine, and knew not whence it was, but the waiters knew, who had drawn the water; the chief steward calleth the bridegroom, and saith to him: Every man at first setteth forth good wine, and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse; but thou hast kept the good wine until now. This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee; and He manifested His glory and His disciples believed in Him.

OFFERTORY. Shout with joy to God, all the earth, sing ye a psalm to His Name. Come and hear, all ye who fear God. and I will tell you what great things He hath done for my soul, alleluia.

SECRET. Sanctify, O Lord, the gifts we offer and cleanse us from the stains of our sins. Through our Lord.

COMMUNION. The Lord saith: Fill the water pots with water. When the chief steward had tasted the water made wine, he said to the bridegroom: Thou hast kept the good wine until now. This beginning of miracles did Jesus before His disciples.

POSTCOMMUNION. Increase in us, O Lord, we beseech Thee, the working of Thy power: that quickened by Thy divine sacraments, we may be prepared by Thy gift to receive what they promise. Through our Lord.

Third Sunday after Epiphany

Semi-double - Green vestments.

A word from Jesus will cleanse the leper, whose cure will be officially verified by the priests "to serve for a testimony to them" of the divinity of Christ (Gospel).

As for the Centurion, he testifies with humility and confidence, and in words which the Church daily puts in our mouths at Mass, that Christ is God. He proves it also by his argument, drawn from the nature of his own position of authority, where he declares that Jesus has only to give the order and the sickness would depart. And his faith obtained for him the great miracle he sought.

Jews and Gentiles will be obliged to recognize the royal divinity of Jesus. The leper, in fact, belongs to the Chosen People of God, and has to submit to the law of Moses. The centurion, on the contrary, is not of the race of Israel, according to the Savior. All the nations, therefore, will take part in the heavenly banquet where the divinity will be the food of their souls. And as in a banquet hall all is warmth and light, the torments of hell, the punishment in store for those who deny the divinity of Christ, are well pictured by the cold and the night that prevail outside, by that "exterior darkness" which is in contrast with the dazzling splendor of the banquet hall.

Let us make acts of faith in the divinity of Christ; and, that we may enter His kingdom, let us, by our charity, heap coals of fire on the heads of those who hate us (Epistle), that is to say such feelings of confusion as our magnanimity will provoke, which will give them no rest until they have expiated their faults.

INTROIT. Adore God, all ye His Angels: Sion heard, and was glad; and the daughters of Juda rejoiced. The Lord hath reigned; let the earth rejoice; let the multitude of the islands be glad. Glory be to the Father.

COLLECT. Almighty and eternal God, graciously look upon our infirmities, and for our protection stretch forth the right hand of Thy Majesty. Through our Lord.

EPISTLE. Rom. xii. 16-21. Brethren: Bo not wise in your own conceits. To no man rendering evil for evil: providing good things not only in the sight of God, but also in the sight of all men. If it be possible, as much as is in you, have peace with all men. Revenge not yourselves, my dearly beloved; but give place unto wrath, for it is written: Revenge is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. But if thy enemy be hungry, give him to eat; if he thirst, give him to drink, for doing this, thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head. Be not overcome by evil, but overcome evil by good.

GRADUAL. The Gentiles shall fear Thy Name, O Lord, and all the kings of the earth, Thy glory. For the Lord hath built up Sion, and He shall be seen in His majesty. Alleluia, alleluia. The Lord hath reigned, let the earth rejoice: let many islands be glad. Alleluia.

GOSPEL. Matt. viii. 1~13. At that time: When Jesus was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed Him; and behold, a leper came and adored Him, saying: Lord, if Thou wilt, Thou canst make me clean. And Jesus stretching forth His hand, touched him, saying: I will; be thou made clean: and forthwith his leprosy was cleansed. And Jesus saith to him: See thou tell no man: but go, show thyself to the priest, and offer the gift which Moses commanded for a testimony unto them. And when He had entered into Capharnaum, there came to Him a centurion, beseeching Him, and saying: Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, and is grievously tormented. And Jesus saith to him: I will come and heal him. And the centurion making answer, said: Lord, I am not worthy that Thou shouldst enter under my roof; but onIy say the word, and my servant shall be healed. For I also am a man subject to authority, having under me soldiers; and I say to this man: Go, and he goeth; and to another: Come, and he cometh; and to my servant: Do this, and he doeth it. And Jesus, hearing this, marvelled; and said to them that followed Him: Amen I say to you, I have not found so great faith in Israel. And I say to you that many shall come from the east and the west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven; but the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into the exterior darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. And Jesus said to the centurion: Go, and as thou hast believed, so be it done to thee; and the servant was healed at the same hour.

OFFERTORY. The right hand of the Lord hath wrought strength, the right hand of the Lord hath exalted me: I shall not die, but live, and shall declare the works of the Lord.

SECRET. May these offerings, O Lord, we beseech Thee, cleanse us from our sins, and sanctify the bodies and minds of Thy servants for the celebration of this sacrifice, Through our Lord. Others as on COMMUNION. They all wondered at these things, which proceeded from the mouth of God,

POSTCOMMUNION. Vouchsafe, O Lord, we beseech Thee to make us, who of Thy bounty frequent these great Mysteries, worthy to enjoy their fruits. Through our Lord.

Fourth Sunday after Epiphany

Semi-double - Green vestments.

The Gospel relates a new miracle. Jesus makes manifest His divinity by commanding such powerful and ungovernable forces in Nature as the fury of the sea and the violence of the winds. And the Evangelist emphasises the greatness of the miracle by contrasting "the great agitation of the waves" and "the great calm that came after" (Gospel). But it is in the Church that the divine sovereignty of Jesus is made manifest; also the Fathers have seen in the winds of the storm an image of the demons who in their pride raise up persecutions against the Saints, and in the turbulent seas an image of the passions and wickedness of man, causes of the breaking of the commandments and of the discords among brethren.

The law and love are, in fact, but one, as the Epistle tells us, for if the first three Commandments of the Decalogue enjoin the love of God, the seven others oblige us, as a logical consequence, to love our neighbour, for God is in him, since, by grace, we are in some measure an increase of the humanity of Jesus Christ.

"This boat" says St. Augustine, "represents the Church," who throughout the centuries makes manifest the divinity of Christ. "Notwithstanding her frailty" (Collect and Secret), she has not been engulfed "in the midst of the many dangers that beset her" (Collect)

INTROIT. Adore God, all ye His Angels: Sion heard, and was glad; and the daughters of Juda rejoiced. The Lord hath reigned; let the earth rejoice; let the multitude of the islands be glad. Glory be to the Father.

COLLECT. O God, who knowest that, placed as we are amid such great dangers we cannot by reason of our human frailty stand: grant us health of mind and body, that by Thy help, we may overcome the things which we suffer for our sins. Through our Lord.

EPISTLE. Rom. xiii. 8-10. Brethren: Owe no man any thing, but to love one another; for he that loveth his neighbor hath fulfilled the law. For Thou shalt not commit adultery, thou shalt not kill: Thou shalt not steal: Thou shalt not bear false witness: Thou shalt not covet: and if there be any other commandment, it is comprised in this word: Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. The love of our neighbor worketh no evil. Love, therefore, is the fulfilling of the law.

GRADUAL. The Gentiles shall fear Thy Name, O Lord, and all the kings of the earth, Thy glory. For the Lord hath built up Sion, and He shall be seen in His majesty. Alleluia, alleluia. The Lord hath reigned, let the earth rejoice: let many islands be glad. Alleluia.

GOSPEL. Matt. viii. 23-27. At that time: When Jesus entered into the boat, His disciples followed Him. And behold a great tempest arose in the sea, so that the boat was covered with waves, but He was asleep. And His disciples came to Him and awaked Him, saying: Lord, save us, we perish. And Jesus saith to them: Why are you fearful, O ye of little faith? Then rising up, He commanded the winds and the sea, and there came a great calm. But the men wondered, saying: What manner of man is this, for the winds and the sea obey Him?

OFFERTORY. The right hand of the Lord hath wrought strength, the right hand of the Lord hath exalted me: I shall not die, but live, and shall declare the works of the Lord.

SECRET. Grant, we beseech Thee, Almighty God, that the offering of this sacrifice may ever purify our frailty and protect it from all evil. Through our Lord.

COMMUNION. They all wondered at these things, which proceeded from the mouth of God,

POSTCOMMUNION. May Thy gifts, 0 God, detach us from earthly pleasures, and ever refresh and strengthen us with heavenly food. Through our Lord.

Fifth Sunday after Easter

Semi-double - Green vestments.

In the narratives of the Evangelists on the preceding Sundays, the divinity of Jesus was manifested in His miracles: to-day it is established by His doctrine, at which the Jews of Nazareth "wondered" (Communion).

The Holy Ghost said: "Consider all the works of the Most High, they are found in couples, one opposite of the other." So the Gospel shows us Christ, with the devil as His opposite; the righteous, with the sinner; heaven, with hell as its opposite; reward, with punishment.

The devil, the bad sower, sows in the dark cockle, which is a violent poison.

The servants of the father of the household, who represent the angels, wished to separate the good from the bad; but as the roots of the wheat and the cockle had become entangled and impossible to separate until the time of harvest, so it is only at the last judgement will divine justice make the necessary separation.

This parable shows that hell and its agents, intent on evil doing, try the righteous, whose merits increase in proportion to the persecutions they undergo.

INTROIT. Adore God, all ye His Angels: Sion heard, and was glad; and the daughters of Juda rejoiced. The Lord hath reigned; let the earth rejoice; let the multitude of the islands be glad. Glory be to the Father.

COLLECT. Keep, O Lord, we beseech Thee, Thy family by Thy continual mercy; that they who lean only upon the hope of Thy heavenly grace may evermore be defended by Thy protection. Through our Lord.

EPISTLE. Col. iii. 12-17. Brethren: Put ye on, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, the bowels of mercy, benignity, humility, modesty, patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another if any have a complaint against another; even as the Lord hath forgiven you, so do you also. But above all these things, have charity, which is the bond of perfection; and let the peace of Christ rejoice in your hearts, wherein also you are called in one body; and be ye thankful Let the word of Christ dwell in you abundantly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another, in psalms, hymns, and spiritual canticles singing in grace in your hearts to God. All whatsoever you do in word or in work, all things do ye in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, giving thanks to God and the Father through Jesus Christ our Lord.

GRADUAL. The Gentiles shall fear Thy Name, O Lord, and all the kings of the earth, Thy glory. For the Lord hath built up Sion, and He shall be seen in His majesty. Alleluia, alleluia. The Lord hath reigned, let the earth rejoice: let many islands be glad. Alleluia.

GOSPEL. Matt. xiii. 24-30. At that time: Jesus spoke this parable to the multitudes: The kingdom of heaven is likened to a man that sowed good seed in his field. But while men were asleep, his enemy came, and oversowed cockle among the wheat, and went his way. And when the blade was sprung up, and had brought forth fruit, then appeared also the cockle. And the servants of the good man of the house coming, said to him: Sir, didst thou not sow good seed in thy field? Whence, then, hath it cockle? And he said to them: An enemy hath done this. And the servants said to him: Wilt thou that we go and gather it up? And he said: No; lest perhaps, gathering up the cockle, you root up the wheat also together with it. Suffer both to grow until the harvest; and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers: Gather up first the cockle, and bind it into bundles to burn, but the wheat gather ye into my barn.

OFFERTORY. The right hand of the Lord hath wrought strength, the right hand of the Lord hath exalted me: I shall not die, but live, and shall declare the works of the Lord.

SECRET. We offer to Thee, O Lord, the sacrifice of propitiation: that Thou mayest mercifully absolve us from our sins, and mayest deign Thyself direct our inconstant hearts. Through our Lord.

COMMUNION. They all wondered at these things, which proceeded from the mouth of God,

POSTCOMMUNION. We beseech Thee, Almighty God, that we may receive the effect of that Salvation, of which in these Mysteries we have received a pledge. Through our Lord.

Sixth Sunday after Epiphany

Semi-double - Green vestments.

The Gospel of the day, like the whole of the liturgy of the Cycle of Christmas, to which it logically belongs, lays stress on the divinity of Christ. Jesus is God, for He reveals to us "things hidden from the foundation of the world" (Gospel). His word, which He likens to a small seed cast on the field of the world, and to a little leaven put in the meal, is divine, for it stills our passions and produces in our hearts the wonders of faith, hope and charity of which the Epistle speaks.

The Church, then, stimulated by the word of Christ, is admirably represented by these three measures of meal that the energy of fermentation has "wholly leavened" (Gospel) and by the mustard plant, the greatest of its species, where the birds of heaven are glad to find shelter.

Let us ever dwell ia thought on the doctrine of Jesus (Collect), so that like the leaven it may penetrate and transform our souls, and like the mustard plant make its fruits of holiness shine in the souls of our neighbours.

INTROIT. Adore God, all ye His Angels: Sion heard, and was glad; and the daughters of Juda rejoiced. The Lord hath reigned; let the earth rejoice; let the multitude of the islands be glad. Glory be to the Father.

COLLECT. Grant us we beseech Thee, Almighty God that ever fixing our thoughts on such things as are rational, we may, both in words and in works do that which is pleasing to Thee. Through our Lord.

EPISTLE. I Thess. i. 2-10. Brethren: We give thanks to God always for you all, making a remembrance of you in our prayers without ceasing; being mindful of the work of your faith, and labor, and charity, and of the enduring of the hope of our Lord Jesus Christ before God and our Father: knowing, brethren, beloved of God, your election; for our gospel hath not been unto you in word only, but in power also, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much fullness, as you know what manner of men we have been among you for your sakes. And you became followers of us and of the Lord; receiving the word in much tribulation, with joy of the Holy Ghost: so that you were made a pattern to all that believe, in Macedonia and in Achaia. For from you was spread abroad the word of the Lord, not only in Macedonia and in Achaia, but also in every place, your faith which is towards God, is gone forth: so that we need not to speak any thing. For they themselves relate of us what manner of entering in we had unto you; and how you turned to God from idols, to serve the living and true God: and to wait for His Son from heaven (Whom He raised up from the dead) Jesus, who hath delivered us from the wrath to come.

GRADUAL. The Gentiles shall fear Thy Name, O Lord, and all the kings of the earth, Thy glory. For the Lord hath built up Sion, and He shall be seen in His majesty. Alleluia, alleluia. The Lord hath reigned, let the earth rejoice: let many islands be glad. Alleluia.

GOSPEL. Matt. xiii. 31-35. At that time: Jesus spoke this parable to the multitudes: The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man: took and sowed in his field: which is the least indeed of all seeds; but when it is grown up, it is greater than all herbs, and becometh a tree; so that the birds of the air come, and dwell in the branches thereof. Another parable He spoke to them: The kingdom of heaven is like to leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, until the whole was leavened. All these things Jesus spoke in parables to the multitudes, and without parables He did not speak to them: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying: I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter things hidden from the foundation of the world.

OFFERTORY. The right hand of the Lord hath wrought strength, the right hand of the Lord hath exalted me: I shall not die, but live, and shall declare the works of the Lord.

SECRET. May this oblation, O God, we beseech Thee, cleanse, renew, govern and protect us. Through our Lord.

COMMUNION. They all wondered at these things, which proceeded from the mouth of God,

POSTCOMMUNION. Being fed, O Lord, with heavenly delights, we beseech Thee that we may ever hunger after those things by which we truly live, Through our Lord.