O come, o come, Emmanuel,
and ransom captive Israel,
that mourns in lonely exile here,
until the Son of God appear.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
shall come to thee, o Israel.
O come, thou Key of David, come
and open wide our heav’nly home.
Make safe the way that leads on high,
and close the path to misery.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
shall come to thee, o Israel.
Gospel Reading: Luke 1: 26-33
In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, “Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you.”But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”
Our Response: Isaiah 40: 25-31
Antiphon: O Come, O Come Emmanuel.
“To whom can you liken me as an equal?” says the Holy One.
Lift up your eyes on high and see who created these:
He leads out their army and numbers them, calling them by name.
By his great might and the strength of his power not one of them is missing!
Why, o Jacob, do you say, and declare, o Israel,
“My way is hidden from the Lord, and my right is disregarded by my God”?
Do you not know? Have you not heard?
The Lord is God from of old, creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint nor grow weary, and his knowledge is beyond scrutiny.
He gives power to the faint, abundant strength to the weak.
Though young men faint and grow weary, and youths stagger and fall,
they that hope in the Lord will renew their strength.
They will soar on eagle’s wings;
they will run and not grow weary, walk and not grow faint.
Antiphon: O Come, O Come Emmanuel.
Quiet Reflection:
What hopes are growing with you as we begin this new year in the Church? What will it take to birth them?
Prayers of Petition:
Please offer any intentions that you may have.
Hail Mary
Closing Prayer:
All: Lord, you have called us in your love. You have told us I will never forget you, my people because I have carved you on the palms of my hands. While we ask you to call new Marist Brothers into your service with us, we also ask you to preserve us whom you have already called so that we may faithfully live out our Marist call today. We make this prayer through Jesus Christ and with Mary, our Mother. Amen.
Salve
