DECEMBER 19
[Mass from preceding Sunday]
INTROIT Philipp. 4:4-6
Rejoice
in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice! Let your moderation be known
to all men. The Lord is near. Have no anxiety; but in every prayer let
your petitions be made known to God.
Ps. 84:2. O Lord, You have blessed Your land; You have restored Jacob from captivity.V. Glory be . . .
COLLECT
Hear our prayers, O Lord, and enlighten
the darkness of our minds by Your coming on earth; who lives and rules
with God the Father . . .
EPISTLE Philipp. 4:4-7
Brethren: Rejoice in the Lord always;
again I say, rejoice. Let your moderation be known to all men. The Lord
is near. Have no anxiety, but in every prayer and supplication with
thanksgiving let your petitions be made known to God. And may the peace
of God which surpasses all understanding guard your hearts and your
minds in Christ Jesus, our Lord.
GRADUAL Ps. 79:2, 3, 2
O Lord, enthroned above the Cherubim, stir up Your might and come.
V. Take heed, you who rule Israel, you who are shepherd over Joseph.
Alleluia, alleluia! V.
Stir up Your might, O Lord, and come to save us.
Alleluia!
GOSPEL John 1:19-28
At that time, when the Jews sent from
Jerusalem priests and Levites to him, to ask him: "Who art thou?" And he
confessed and did not deny: and he confessed: "I am not the Christ."
And they asked him: "What then? Art thou Elias?" And he said: "I am
not." "Art thou the prophet? And he answered: "No." They said therefore
unto him: "Who art thou, that we may give an answer to them that sent
us? What sayest thou of thyself?" He said: "I am the voice of one crying
in the wilderness, make straight the way of the Lord, as said the
prophet Isaias." And they that were sent were of the Pharisees. And they
asked him and said to him: "Why then dost thou baptize, if thou be not
Christ, nor Elias, nor the prophet?" John answered them, saying: "I
baptize with water: but there hath stood one in the midst of you, whom
you know not. The same is he that shall come after me, who is preferred
before me: the latchet of whose shoe I am not worthy to loose." These
things were done in Bethania, beyond the Jordan, where John was
baptizing.
OFFERTORY ANTIPHON Ps. 84:2, 3
O Lord, You have blessed Your land; You have restored Jacob from captivity; You have forgiven the sinfulness of Your people.
SECRET
May we always offer the sacrifice of
adoration in such a manner, O Lord, that it will attain the purpose for
which You instituted this sacred rite, and bring about our salvation.
Through Our Lord . . .
COMMUNION ANTIPHON Isa. 35:4
Say to the fainthearted, "Take courage and fear not. Behold, our God will come and will save us."
POSTCOMMUNION
In Your mercy cleanse us from our sins
by these divine Rites, O Lord, and make us ready for the coming feast.
Through Our Lord . . .
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Blessed Urban V’s Story
In 1362, the man elected pope declined the office. When the cardinals could not find another person among them for that important office, they turned to a relative stranger: the holy person we honor today.
The new Pope Urban V proved a wise choice. A Benedictine monk and canon lawyer, he was deeply spiritual and brilliant. He lived simply and modestly, which did not always earn him friends among clergymen who had become used to comfort and privilege. Still, he pressed for reform, and saw to the restoration of churches and monasteries. Except for a brief period he spent most of his eight years as pope living away from Rome at Avignon, seat of the papacy from 1309, until shortly after his death.
Urban came close, but was not able to achieve one of his biggest goals—reuniting the Eastern and Western churches.
As pope, Urban continued to follow the Benedictine Rule. Shortly before his death in 1370, he asked to be moved from the papal palace to the nearby home of his brother, so he could say goodbye to the ordinary people he had so often helped.
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