Before my day comes, I will send you Elijah my prophet
The Lord God says this: Look, I am going to send my messenger to prepare a way before me. And the Lord you are seeking will suddenly enter his Temple; and the angel of the covenant whom you are longing for, yes, he is coming, says the Lord of Hosts. Who will be able to resist the day of his coming? Who will remain standing when he appears? For he is like the refiner’s fire and the fullers’ alkali. He will take his seat as refiner and purifier; he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and then they will make the offering to the Lord as it should be made. The offering of Judah and Jerusalem will then be welcomed by the Lord as in former days, as in the years of old.
Know that I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before my day comes, that great and terrible day. He shall turn the hearts of fathers towards their children and the hearts of children towards their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a curse.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 24(25):4-5,8-9,10,14
Gospel Acclamation
Alleluia, alleluia!
King of the peoples
and cornerstone of the Church,
come and save man,
whom you made from the dust of the earth.
Alleluia!
Gospel
Luke 1:57-66
‘His name is John’
The time came for Elizabeth to have her child, and she gave birth to a son; and when her neighbours and relations heard that the Lord had shown her so great a kindness, they shared her joy.
Now on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child; they were going to call him Zechariah after his father, but his mother spoke up. ‘No,’ she said ‘he is to be called John.’ They said to her, ‘But no one in your family has that name’, and made signs to his father to find out what he wanted him called. The father asked for a writing-tablet and wrote, ‘His name is John.’ And they were all astonished. At that instant his power of speech returned and he spoke and praised God. All their neighbours were filled with awe and the whole affair was talked about throughout the hill country of Judaea. All those who heard of it treasured it in their hearts. ‘What will this child turn out to be?’ they wondered. And indeed the hand of the Lord was with him.
Nothing has changed
In England, Wales and Scotland, the translation of the readings used at Mass has changed. Your current calendar setting is “Africa – Nigeria”, so you have not been affected by this change.
This message will disappear at the end of December.
The responsorial psalms at Mass cannot be displayed on the Web, for copyright reasons. The Universalis apps and programs do contain these psalms.
Christian Art
Each day, The Christian Art website gives a picture and reflection on the Gospel of the day.
The readings on this page are from the Jerusalem Bible, which is used at Mass in much of the English-speaking world. The English Standard Version, which is used at Mass in Great Britain, will be shown here if you set this page to use a calendar for Great Britain. The New American Bible readings, which are used at Mass in the United States, are available in the Universalis apps, programs and downloads.
You can also view this page with the Gospel in Greek and English.
Get Universalis — and change your life! Readings at Mass Liturgical Colour: Green. Year: B(II). First reading Ezekiel 2:8-3:4 He gave me the scroll to eat and it was as sweet as honey I, Ezekiel, heard a voice speaking. It said, ‘You, son of man, listen to the words I say; do not be a…
Listen to the podcast! Readings at Mass Liturgical Colour: Green. Year: B(II). First reading Ezekiel 24:15-24 The Lord will profane his sanctuary The word of the Lord was addressed to me as follows, ‘Son of man, I am about to deprive you suddenly of the delight of your eyes. But you are not to lament,…
Get Universalis — and change your life! Readings at Mass Liturgical Colour: Green. Year: B(II). First reading Apocalypse 11:4-12 The prophets will die who have been a plague to the world I, John, heard a voice saying: ‘These, my two witnesses, are the two olive trees and the two lamps that stand before the Lord…
