Be Watchful! (1ST SUNDAY OF ADVENT - B)

December 03, 2023 - SUNDAY
First Sunday of Advent (Violet)
Lectionary: 2
START OF THE NEW LITURGICAL CALENDAR YEAR: CYCLE B - YEAR II

Reading 1
IS 63:16B-17, 19B; 64:2-7

You, LORD, are our father,
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
PS 80:2-3, 15-16, 18-19

R. (4) Lord, make us turn to you; let us see your face and we shall be saved.

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.
 
 

Reading II
1 COR 1:3-9

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.

Alleluia
PS 85:8

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Show us Lord, your love;
and grant us your salvation.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel
MK 13:33-37

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!’”

REFLECTION:

Advent begins today. We spend this time preparing for the coming of Christ into our world. He is here already, of course, but he wants to come closer. Let me be one of his points of entry by keeping awake to open the door when he knocks.

The gospel highlights that we can miss the master of then house because we do not know when he is coming. We know when the ‘master of the house’ is coming and still we can miss him! Christmas can pass by many of us and we have little time for the main event and people of the mystery. Or we can hit it in spots. Christmas itself is so busy and often with very worthwhile events for the family. So the four weeks we begin today can ensure we don’t miss it.

We are all ’the work of your hand’ as the first reading ( Isaiah 63:16-17; 64:1. 3) reminds us. God is all the time at work, creating us. It’s not that he made us, and then left us. It’s not love at a distance. God is present within us and without. Christmas will be the time of recalling this.

This presence is a joy for all people, not just for Jesus’ own family, the Jewish people. The coming of Jesus reminds us of this universal love, for those within our circle and those of other races, colours and opinions.

It is a time of thanks, as in the second reading (Corinthians 1:3-9): ‘thanking God for all the graces you have received through Jesus Christ’. As we watch and wait for Christmas, we can make a prayer of thanks to God each day, for our faith and for the love we find and give in life.

PRAYER:

Help me Lord, to notice you in all the love and faith in my life.