Catechism Links
CCC 668-677, 769: the final tribulation and Christ’s return in glory
CCC 451, 671, 1130, 1403, 2817: “Come, Lord Jesus!”
CCC 439, 496, 559, 2616: Jesus is the Son of David
CCC 207, 210-214, 270, 1062-1063: God is faithful and merciful
CCC Cross Reference:
Lk 21:27 671, 697; Lk 21:34-36 2612
Back to Deacon’s Bench ‘06
Back to Servant of the Word ‘09
Back to SOW II '13
Back to SOW II '16
Back to SOW II '19
Back to SOW II '22
Back to SOW II '25
Back to SOW II '25
Reading 1:
Jer 33:14-16
The days are coming, says the LORD,
when I will fulfill the promise
I made to the house of Israel and Judah.
In those days, in that time,
I will raise up for David a just shoot ;
he shall do what is right and just in the land.
In those days Judah shall be safe
and Jerusalem shall dwell secure;
this is what they shall call her:
“The LORD our justice.”
Responsorial Psalm:
Ps 25:4-5, 8-9, 10, 14
R. (1b) To you, O Lord, I lift my soul.
Your ways, O LORD, make known to me;
teach me your paths,
Guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God my savior,
and for you I wait all the day.
R. To you, O Lord, I lift my soul.
Good and upright is the LORD;
thus he shows sinners the way.
He guides the humble to justice,
and teaches the humble his way.
R. To you, O Lord, I lift my soul.
All the paths of the LORD are kindness and constancy
toward those who keep his covenant and his decrees.
The friendship of the LORD is with those who fear him,
and his covenant, for their instruction.
R. To you, O Lord, I lift my soul.
Reading II:
1 Thes 3:12-4:2
Brothers and sisters:
May the Lord make you increase and abound in love
for one another and for all,
just as we have for you,
so as to strengthen your hearts,
to be blameless in holiness before our God and Father
at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his holy ones. Amen.
Finally, brothers and sisters,
we earnestly ask and exhort you in the Lord Jesus that,
as you received from us
how you should conduct yourselves to please God
Cand as you are conducting yourselves
you do so even more.
For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus.
Gospel:
Lk 21:25-28, 34-36
Jesus said to his disciples:
“There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars,
and on earth nations will be in dismay,
perplexed by the roaring of the sea and the waves.
People will die of fright
in anticipation of what is coming upon the world,
for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
And then they will see the Son of Man
coming in a cloud with power and great glory.
But when these signs begin to happen,
stand erect and raise your heads
because your redemption is at hand.
“Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy
from carousing and drunkenness
and the anxieties of daily life,
and that day catch you by surprise like a trap.
For that day will assault everyone
who lives on the face of the earth.
Be vigilant at all times
and pray that you have the strength
to escape the tribulations that are imminent
and to stand before the Son of Man.”
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading Jeremiah 33:14-16
See, the days are coming – it is the Lord who speaks – when I am going to fulfill the promise I made to the House of Israel and the House of Judah:
‘In those days and at that time,
I will make a virtuous Branch grow for David,
who shall practice honesty and integrity in the land.
In those days Judah shall be saved
and Israel shall dwell in confidence.
And this is the name the city will be called:
The-Lord-our-integrity.’
Responsorial Psalm:
Psalm 24(25):4-5,8-9,10,14
To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul.
Lord, make me know your ways.
Lord, teach me your paths.
Make me walk in your truth, and teach me:
for you are God my saviour.
To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul.
The Lord is good and upright.
He shows the path to those who stray,
He guides the humble in the right path,
He teaches his way to the poor.
To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul.
His ways are faithfulness and love
for those who keep his covenant and law.
The Lord’s friendship is for those who revere him;
to them he reveals his covenant.
To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul.
Second reading 1 Thessalonians 3:12-4:2
May the Lord be generous in increasing your love and make you love one another and the whole human race as much as we love you. And may he so confirm your hearts in holiness that you may be blameless in the sight of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus Christ comes with all his saints.
Finally, brothers, we urge you and appeal to you in the Lord Jesus to make more and more progress in the kind of life that you are meant to live: the life that God wants, as you learnt from us, and as you are already living it. You have not forgotten the instructions we gave you on the authority of the Lord Jesus.
Gospel Luke 21:25-28,34-36
Jesus said to his disciples: ‘There will be signs in the sun and moon and stars; on earth nations in agony, bewildered by the clamor of the ocean and its waves; men dying of fear as they await what menaces the world, for the powers of heaven will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. When these things begin to take place, stand erect, hold your heads high, because your liberation is near at hand.
‘Watch yourselves, or your hearts will be coarsened with debauchery and drunkenness and the cares of life, and that day will be sprung on you suddenly, like a trap. For it will come down on every living man on the face of the earth. Stay awake, praying at all times for the strength to survive all that is going to happen, and to stand with confidence before the Son of Man.’
Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible
1st Sunday of Advent
From: Jeremiah 33:14-16
Grounds for hope
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[14] "Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah. [15] In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring forth for David; and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. [16] In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will dwell securely. And this is the name by which it will be called: 'The LORD is our righteousness.'
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Commentary:
33:14-26. These verses, which are not in the Septuagint and which may be a later addition, are a collection of messianic announcements based on the unchanging nature of the Lord's promise. He will keep the Davidic dynasty in being through a descendant of David (vv. 15-16; cf. 23:5-6; 2 Sam 7:12-16) and will ensure that there are always Levites to perform the functions of priests (vv. 17-18). This pact will be as fixed as the laws that govern the universe (vv. 19-26: cf. 33:2). The "two families" (v. 24) refer to Israel (Jacob) and Judah (David).
The New Testament shows that all the promises in the "Book of Consolation" find fulfillment in Jesus Christ, son of David (cf. Mt 1:1), the eternal high priest of the New Covenant (cf. Heb 8:1-13). "God is ever faithful, and he has placed himself in our debt, not because he has received anything from us, but through all the promises he has made to us. In his own eyes, the promises seem to be of little value; he has put them in writing, a compendium of promises, so that we will be able to read them, one after another, as they come to pass. As has been said many times before, the prophetic era is made up of the days in which the Lord made his promises" (St Augustine, "Enarrationes in Psalmos", 109, 1).
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From: 1 Thessalonians 3:12-4:2
He (Paul) Prays for the Thessalonians
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[12] And may the Lord make you increase and abound in love to one another and to all men, as we do to you, [13] so that he may establish your hearts un-blamable in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.
He Calls for Holiness and Purity
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[1] Finally, brethren, we beseech and exhort you in the Lord Jesus, that as you learned from us how you ought to live and to please God, just as you are doing, you do so more and more. [2] For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus.
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Commentary:
12-13. Love is a supernatural virtue which inclines us to love God (for his own sake) above all things, and our neighbor as ourselves for the love of God. Given that charity is a virtue which God infuses into the soul, it is something we must not only practice but also ask God to increase in us.
Supernatural love, or charity, embraces everyone without exception. "Loving one person and showing indifference to others", St John Chrysostom observes, "is characteristic of purely human affection; but St Paul is telling us that our love should not be restricted in any way" ("Hom. on 1 Thess, ad loc."). When a person practices this virtue in an uninhibited way, his holiness gains in strength: he becomes irreproachable "before our Lord and Father"; "in this does the true merit of virtue really consist--and not in simply being blameless before men [...]. Yes, I shall say it again: it is charity, it is love, which makes us blameless" ("ibid.").
"With all his saints": referring to believers who died in the grace of God.
1. St Paul encourages the Thessalonians "in the Lord Jesus" to follow his advice: he does not make this plea in his own name or using his personal influence but in the name of the Lord Jesus. Those who have positions of authority in the Church should be obeyed, above all, for supernatural reasons (that is what God desires) and not for any personal qualities they happen to have or simply because they are "superiors". It is this outlook which causes St Ignatius Loyola to say that "laying aside all private judgment, we ought to keep our minds prepared and ready to obey in all things the true Spouse of Christ our Lord, which is our Holy Mother, the hierarchical Church" ("Spiritual Exercises", 353).
The Thessalonians already knew the commandments, but knowing them is not enough; they must be put into practice. St John Chrysostom comments: "Good land does something more than give back the grain put into it; and therefore the soul should not limit itself to doing what is laid down, but should go further [...]. Two things make for virtue--avoiding evil and doing good. Fleeing from evil is not the be-all of virtue; it is the beginning of the path that leads to virtue. One needs, in addition, to have an ardent desire to be good and to do good" ("Hom. on 1 Thess, ad loc.").
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From: Luke 21:25-28; 34-36
Discourse on the Destruction of Jerusalem
and the End of the World (Continuation)
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(Jesus said to his disciples), [25] "And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and upon the earth distress of nations in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, [26] men fainting with fear and foreboding of what is coming on the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. [27] And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. [28] Now when these things begin to take place, look up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near."
The Need for Vigilance
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[34] "But take heed to yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a snare; [35] for it will come upon all who dwell upon the face of the whole earth. [36] But watch at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that will take place, and to stand before the Son of Man."
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Commentary:
25-26. Jesus refers to the dramatic changes in natural elements when the world is coming to an end. "The powers of the heavens will be shaken"; that is to say, the whole universe will tremble at the Lord's coming in power and glory.
27-28. Applying to himself the prophecy of Daniel (7:13-14), our Lord speaks of his coming in glory at the end of time. Mankind will see the power and glory of the Son of man, coming to judge the living and the dead. Christ will deliver this judgment in his human capacity. Sacred Scripture describes the solemnity of this event, when the sentence passed on each person in the particular judgment will be confirmed, and God's justice and mercy to men throughout history will shine out for all to see. "It was necessary not only that rewards should await the just and punishments the wicked, in the life to come, but that they should be awarded by a public and general judgment. Thus they will become better known and will be rendered more conspicuous to all, and a tribute of praise will be offered by all to the justice and providence of God" ("St Pius V Catechism", I, 8, 4).
This coming of the Lord is, then, a day of terror for evildoers and of joy for those who have remained faithful. The disciples should hold their heads high because their redemption is at hand. It is the day they will receive their reward. The victory won by Christ on the cross--victory over sin, over the devil and over death --will now be seen clearly, with all its implications. Therefore St Paul recommends that we be "awaiting our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ" (Titus 2:13).
"He [Christ] ascended into heaven whence he will come again to judge the living and the dead, each according to his merits. Those who have responded to the love and compassion of God will go into eternal life. Those who have refused them to the end will be consigned to the fire that is never extinguished" (Paul VI, "Creed of the People of God", 12).
34-36. At the end of His discourse Jesus emphasizes that every Christian needs to be vigilant: we do not know the day nor the hour in which He will ask us to render an account of our lives. Therefore, we must at all times be trying to do God's will, so that death, whenever it comes, will find us ready. For those who act in this way, sudden death never takes them by surprise. As St. Paul recommends: "You are not in darkness, brethren, for that day to surprise you like a thief" (1 Thessalonians 5:4). Vigilance consists in making a constant effort not to be attached to the things of this world (the concupiscence of the flesh, the concupiscence of the eyes and pride of life: cf. John 2:16) and in being assiduous in prayer, which keeps us close to God. If we live in this way, the day we die will be a day of joy and not of terror, for with God's help our vigilance will mean that our souls are ready to receive the visit of our Lord; they are in the state of grace: in meeting Christ we will not be meeting a judge who will find us guilty; instead He will embrace us and lead us into the house of His Father to remain there forever. "Does your soul not burn with the desire to make your Father-God happy when He has to judge you?" (St. J. Escriva, "The Way", 746).
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Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and by Scepter Publishers in the United States. We encourage readers to purchase The Navarre Bible for personal study. See Scepter Publishers for details.
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