Entrance Antiphon
Let my prayer come into your presence.
Incline your ear to my cry for help, O Lord.
First Reading: Wisdom 6:12-16. A reading from the book of Wisdom
Wisdom is found by those who look for it.
Wisdom is bright, and does not grow dim.
By those who love her she is readily seen,
and found by those who look for her.
Quick to anticipate those who desire her, she makes herself known to them.
Watch for her early and you will have no trouble;
you will find her sitting at your gates.
Even to think about her is understanding fully grown;
be on the alert for her and anxiety will quickly leave you.
She herself walks about looking for those who are worthy of her
and graciously shows herself to them as they go,
in every thought of theirs coming to meet them.
Responsorial Psalm: My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.
- O God, you are my God, for you I long;
for you my soul is thirsting.
My body pines for you
like a dry, weary land without water. (R.)
- So I gaze on you in the sanctuary.
to see your strength and your glory.
For your love is better than life,
my lips will speak your praise. (R.)
- So I will bless you all my life,
in your name I will lift up my hands.
My soul shall be filled as with a banquet,
my mouth shall praise you with joy. (R.)
- On my bed I remember you.
On you I muse through the night
for you have been my help;
in the shadow of your wings I rejoice. (R.)
Second Reading: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18. A reading from the first letter of St Paul to the Thessalonians
Those who died as Christians, God will bring to life with Jesus.
We want you to be quite certain, brothers, about those who have died, to make sure that you do not grieve about them, like the other people who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again, and that it will be the same for those who have died in Jesus: God will bring them with him. We can tell you this from the Lord’s own teaching, that any of us who are left alive until the Lord’s coming will not have any advantage over those who have died. At the trumpet of God, the voice of the archangel will call out the command and the Lord himself will come down from heaven; those who have died in Christ will be the first to rise, and then those of us who are still alive will be taken up in the clouds, together with them, to meet the Lord in the air. So we shall stay with the Lord for ever. With such thoughts as these you should comfort one another.
Gospel Acclamation: Alleluia, alleluia!. Be watchful and ready: you know not when the Son of Man is coming. Alleluia!
Gospel: Matthew 25:1-13. A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew
Look, the bridegroom comes. Go out to meet him.
Jesus told this parable to his disciples: ‘The kingdom of heaven will be like this: Ten bridesmaids took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five of them were sensible: the foolish ones did take their lamps, but they brought no oil, whereas the sensible ones took flasks of oil as well as their lamps. The bridegroom was late, and they all grew drowsy and fell asleep. But at midnight there was a cry, “The bridegroom is here! Go out and meet him.” At this, all those bridesmaids woke up and trimmed their lamps, and the foolish ones said to the sensible ones, “Give us some of your oil: our lamps are going out.” But they replied, “There may not be enough for us and for you; you had better go to those who sell it and buy some for yourselves.” They had gone off to buy it when the bridegroom arrived. Those who were ready went in with him to the wedding hall and the door was closed. The other bridesmaids arrived later. “Lord, Lord,” they said, “open the door for us.” But he replied, “I tell you solemnly, I do not know you.” So stay awake, because you do not know either the day or the hour.’
REFLECTION
by Nick Brodie
Leo’s Lens
‘To welcome a person means to integrate them as if they were part of one’s own family,’ Pope Leo says, ‘offering them the opportunity to develop their gifts, abilities and sensibilities, but also to enter into the life of the household.’ While we all must attend to the oil in our lamps, we must also ensure others have opportunity to do likewise.
We live in an epoch of what the Pope characterises as ‘unprecedented encounter between peoples and cultures.’ This period, he says, ‘calls us to rediscover our roots in new and creative ways, while at the same time listening carefully to others.’
As part of that, the Pope encourages us to reflect on how we are called to serve each other for the good of all. ‘We need to commit ourselves to patient dialogue,’ he says, ‘to show courage in negotiation and to be willing to give up some positions for the greater good of peace.’
The Pope wants us to be true to our deepest values, open to the needs and gifts of others. In doing so, we become the illumination the world needs right now. The lamp we can light is that of kindness and compassion, humanity and common sense. Perhaps we can start by topping up the oil of welcome.