Entrance Antiphon
Blest be God the Father,
and the Only Begotten Son of God,
and also the Holy Spirit,
for he has shown us his merciful love.
First Reading: Exodus 34:4-6. 8-9. A reading from the book of Exodus
The Lord God, ruler of all, merciful and loving.
With the two tablets of stone in his hands, Moses went up the mountain of Sinai in the early morning as the Lord had commanded him. And the Lord descended in the form of a cloud, and Moses stood with him there.
He called on the name of the Lord. The Lord passed before him and proclaimed, ‘Lord, Lord, a God of tenderness and compassion, slow to anger, rich in kindness and faithfulness.’ And Moses bowed down to the ground at once and worshipped. ‘If I have indeed won your favour, Lord,’ he said, ‘let my Lord come with us, I beg. True, they are a headstrong people, but forgive us our faults and our sins, and adopt us as your heritage.’
Responsorial Psalm: Glory and praise for ever!
- You are blest, Lord God of our fathers. (R.)
Blest your glorious holy name. (R.)
- You are blest in the temple of your glory. (R.)
You are blest on the throne of your kingdom. (R.)
- You are blest who gaze into the depths. (R.)
You are blest in the firmament of heaven. (R.)
Second Reading: 2 Corinthians 13:11-13. A reading from the second letter of St Paul to the Corinthians
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
Brothers, we wish you happiness; try to grow perfect; help one another. Be united; live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you.
Greet one another with the holy kiss. All the saints send you greetings.
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
Gospel Acclamation: Alleluia, alleluia! Glory to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit: to God who is, who was, and who is to come. Alleluia!
Gospel: John 3:16-18. A reading from the holy Gospel according to John
God sent his Son to save the world through him.
Jesus said to Nicodemus,
‘God loved the world so much
that he gave his only Son,
so that everyone who believes in him may not be lost
but may have eternal life.
For God sent his Son into the world
not to condemn the world,
but so that through him the world might be saved.
No one who believes in him will be condemned;
but whoever refuses to believe is condemned already,
because he has refused to believe
in the name of God’s only Son.’
REFLECTION
by Nick Brodie (Leo’s Lens)
‘The mystery of union with Christ lies at the heart of mission’, Pope Leo XIV reminds us. Indeed, as he explains, the Church itself is ‘a communion that flows from the Trinity, and continues to be sustained by the Trinity. A communion at the service of fraternity among all human beings and harmony with all creation.’
‘Being a Christian’, therefore, the Pope explains, ‘means abiding in Christ … immersed in the life of the Trinity.’ As the Pope puts it, ‘the more united we are in Christ, the better able we will be to carry out together the mission that he entrusts to us.’
Our proclamation of the Gospel, therefore, the Pope adds, should be ‘an action that is always harmonious, communal and synodal.’ He encourages us to ‘learn to recognise joyfully the good that the Spirit inspires in each person, to embrace diversity as a treasure, to bear one another’s burdens and always to seek the unity that comes from above.’
‘The mission of the disciples and the Church as a whole,’ the Pope encourages us to recollect, ‘is to continue the mission of Christ in the Holy Spirit: a mission born of love, lived in love, and leading to love.’