20-second Summary
Happy New Year! The first week of advent is the first week of the new Liturgical Year and we begin the season of Advent, which means “coming”. Advent is marked by the color violet and we bring out the Advent wreath at church and in our homes. In this season we await the coming of Jesus – both at His birth and at the end of time. It is a time of watchful waiting and preparation. The readings this Sunday all follow the theme of the last word of the Gospel – “Watch!” Discussion topics and activities to start the new year are part of TWMWU.
First Week of Advent – Watch!
First Reading
Reading I
our redeemer you are named forever.
Why do you let us wander, O LORD, from your ways,
and harden our hearts so that we fear you not?
Return for the sake of your servants,
the tribes of your heritage.
Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down,
with the mountains quaking before you,
while you wrought awesome deeds we could not hope for,
such as they had not heard of from of old.
No ear has ever heard, no eye ever seen, any God but you
doing such deeds for those who wait for him.
Would that you might meet us doing right,
that we were mindful of you in our ways!
Behold, you are angry, and we are sinful;
all of us have become like unclean people,
all our good deeds are like polluted rags;
we have all withered like leaves,
and our guilt carries us away like the wind.
There is none who calls upon your name,
who rouses himself to cling to you;
for you have hidden your face from us
and have delivered us up to our guilt.
Yet, O LORD, you are our father;
we are the clay and you the potter:
we are all the work of your hands.
Responsorial Psalm
Responsorial Psalm
O shepherd of Israel, hearken,
from your throne upon the cherubim, shine forth.
Rouse your power,
and come to save us.
R. Lord, make us turn to you; let us see your face and we shall be saved.
Once again, O LORD of hosts,
look down from heaven, and see;
take care of this vine,
and protect what your right hand has planted
the son of man whom you yourself made strong.
R. Lord, make us turn to you; let us see your face and we shall be saved.
May your help be with the man of your right hand,
with the son of man whom you yourself made strong.
Then we will no more withdraw from you;
give us new life, and we will call upon your name.
R. Lord, make us turn to you; let us see your face and we shall be saved.
Second Reading
Reading II
Brothers and sisters:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father
and the Lord Jesus Christ.
I give thanks to my God always on your account
for the grace of God bestowed on you in Christ Jesus,
that in him you were enriched in every way,
with all discourse and all knowledge,
as the testimony to Christ was confirmed among you,
so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift
as you wait for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ.
He will keep you firm to the end,
irreproachable on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
God is faithful,
and by him you were called to fellowship with his Son,
Jesus Christ our Lord.
Gospel Reading
Alleluia
Show us Lord, your love;
and grant us your salvation.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Be watchful! Be alert!
You do not know when the time will come.
It is like a man traveling abroad.
He leaves home and places his servants in charge,
each with his own work,
and orders the gatekeeper to be on the watch.
Watch, therefore;
you do not know when the Lord of the house is coming,
whether in the evening, or at midnight,
or at cockcrow, or in the morning.
May he not come suddenly and find you sleeping.
What I say to you, I say to all: ‘Watch!’”
Catechesis At Home – “Watch!”
First Week of Advent – Year B
Happy New Year!
This is the first week of the new Liturgical Year and we begin the season of Advent, which means “coming”. Advent is marked by the color violet and we bring out the Advent wreath at church and in our homes. In this season we await the coming of Jesus – both at His birth and at the end of time. It is a time of watchful waiting and preparation. The readings this Sunday all follow the theme of the last word of the Gospel – “Watch!”
Isaiah pleads on behalf of God’s People for Him to come and rescue them from their sinfulness. He concludes his plea with a reminder that we are clay in the hands of the Potter, an offering of ourselves to God and His Plan. Are you willing to let God mold you into who He envisions you to be?
The Psalm response echoes Isaiah’s plea:
Lord, make us turn to you; let us see your face and we shall be saved.
St. Paul gives thanks for our participation in God’s Plan. He prays for us as we wait for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is an encouraging and uplifting reminder of the promises made in our Baptism!
Jesus concludes our meditation with expressive imagery of a master returning home and the powerful “Watch!” as His final instruction this week.
Pray through these readings again and ask yourself the following:
- How can I offer myself to God in a more meaningful way, allowing Him to mold me?
- Am I seeking the revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ? How?
- If you are not sure how, begin with reading Scripture.
- Start with the Gospels. Choose one and read a few verses a day. Ask the Lord to reveal Himself and His Plan for you.
- OR, read the Daily Readings. You can sign up on various sites to have them delivered to your inbox.
- Beth likes this one: Blessed Is She
- Kristofer likes to listen on the Amazon Alexa-enabled device: Catholic Daily Mass Readings.
- OR, follow the season of Advent utilizing the Jesse Tree and it’s accompanying Scriptures.
- Develop a relationship with Jesus in daily prayer.
- If you are not sure how, begin with reading Scripture.
- What is God’s promise to me? (1 John 2:25)
- What is my promise to Him? (If you are not sure, check out the Baptismal promises.)
- Am I watching for Jesus? What ways can I watch for the Advent of the Incarnation and His Second Coming?
Don’t forget to check out HOO’s Advent Resources page for links and downloads, including Advent Wreath blessing and prayers, Confession guide for Children (handy for adults, too), Jesse Tree printables and more!
Click here for the printable PDF version of This Week’s Free Thing!
How does your family watch and wait for Jesus during Advent?
Other Things on HOO
Being On The Road To Perfection – Episode 166
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 24:32 — 22.6MB)
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We are called to be perfect, as we discussed last week.
So, what does being on the road to perfection look like?
If Jesus was “finished” and his ministry was “completed,” as it means when He said, “It is done,” by saying, “It is perfected” just before He died on the Cross, He must have walked a road to perfection.
And so must we.
In this episode we discuss that concept, in terms of what we are doing and how we respond to the call for our life.
It’s a simple concept, and a difficult task, but we have the example of Our Lord which, from the proper perspective, is not an impossible example to follow and exemplify.
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